Panic can strike suddenly and repeatedly with no warning, bringing with it
overwhelming feelings of terror and intense anxiety. Panic Disorder is characterized
by periods of excessive worry punctuated by occasional Panic Attacks. These
Panic Attacks can occur at any time, even during sleep, and can be brought
on with or without an external trigger.
A Panic Attack is defined as experiencing at least four of the following symptoms
intensely for an acute period of time, about 10 minutes on average:
- Racing or pounding heart rate.
- Feeling smothered or inability to breathe.
- Trembling or uncontrollable shaking.
- Overwhelming desire to escape or flee.
- Excessive sweating.
- Dizziness.
- Chest pains.
- Feeling that you are about to die or go “crazy.”
- Nausea.
- Tingling in the extremities.
A person having a Panic Attack may feel as if they’re having a heart
attack. Often times they end up in the emergency room because they believe
that they are dying. After their first experience of a Panic Attack, many people
fall into a pattern of avoidance in an attempt to steer clear of any triggers
that they associate with having a Panic Attack. They also may encounter feelings
of depression or turn to alcohol and drugs in an attempt to self-medicate.
In some cases a person with Panic Disorder may so restrict his or her life
in an attempt to avoid Panic Attacks that they can no longer enjoy a normal
daily routine of grocery shopping, driving, working, or engaging in social
activities.
The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that approximately 2.4 million
Americans experience Panic Disorder. If left untreated, Panic Disorder can
worsen to the point that an individual cannot leave their house, a condition
known as Agoraphobia. There is help available, though. In fact, Panic Disorder
is one of the most treatable anxiety-related disorders. Psychotherapy, prescription
medication, and natural alternatives are some of the options open to those
suffering with Panic Attacks and Panic Disorder.
Author: Nan Little
Website: http://www.insightjournal.com/
Research shows that panic attacks can be caused by multiple factors.
Enclosed spaces, social events, crowds, phobias, heredity and anxiety
are just some of the potential factors explored here.
What are the steps to diagnosing a panic disorder? Find out what your
healthcare professional will need to learn in order to determine
whether you experience occasional anxiety and panic or have a panic
disorder.
What type of person develops a panic disorder? Learn more about what
researchers have discovered, including temperament and triggers, the
‘gender factor’ as well as family history.
There are actually several different types of panic attacks that a
person can experience if they have panic disorder. Situational
predisposed panic attacks, spontaneous panic attacks, and cued panic
attacks share certain characteristics, but they are each triggered
differently. Find out more about the different types of panic attacks
here.
Individuals who have been diagnosed with panic disorder have many
treatment options available to them. Psychotherapy (including
Cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy
(REBT), prescription medications, as well as Complementary and
Alternative Medicine (CAM) are just some of the many treatments for panic attacks.
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