Social Anxiety

Many people will suffer through a panic attack at least once in their lives. They have a variety of causes and there are many ways to teach you how to control panic attacks. If you believe you may have had one or may have one in the future, then this article will introduce you to some techniques to help you through them.

Quick Summary

A panic attack is professionally defined as the unexplained but sudden start of an intense anxiety that can easily become fear, terror and a lot of times is accompanied by or results in the assuredness of impending disaster. The person experiencing these symptoms might become convinced that he or she is going insane, unable to control him or herself and is going to die.

Symptoms

There are several symptoms that accompany all panic attacks. It is characterized by the sudden onset of breathing trouble, discomfort or pain in the chest, palpitations of the heart, the feeling of being choked or smothered, vertigo, unexplainable bodily sensations, cold or hot flashes, excess sweating, shaking, a feeling of unreality or even fainting. Hyperventilation often occurs as well.

Causes

Nobody is certain of the exact cause. Sometimes they are hereditary, sometimes they are stress related and sometimes they are brought on by biochemical factors. If they run in your family, you are likely to experience them too, but they do not denote a disorder unless you have four or more of them in a single month. Some scientists believe the fight-or-flight instinct is a factor and it may occur when you are presented with similar situations of a traumatic incident in your life.

How to Control Panic Attacks

There are many ways of controlling your panic attacks. If you suffer from this disorder, your doctor may prescribe medications and recommend therapy. The medication prescribed is usually anti-anxiety medication and anti-depression medication. These often come from the benzodiazepine family and include diazepam, and clonazepam, lorazepam and alprazolam. Unfortunately it is easy to build up a tolerance for these drugs, so it will require higher dosages of the drug to keep it working effectively.

Here is more advice to control panic attacks: try breathing through the nose slowly and deeply can help ease the body's tension. If you find yourself feeling afraid of the future, ask yourself what is going on in that moment. Learn to recognize the signs and accept that you are having a panic attack. Just the recognizing that you may be having one can help ease its symptoms.

Panic attacks can be very disconcerting for people who have them. If you suffer from this disorder, it is very important that you visit your doctor and figure out a course of treatment to keep them under control. This can be done through medication and therapy, and simple coping techniques.

If you would like to learn how to control panic attacks check out this self help program here.