Archive for November, 2009

Undoubtedly, you are reading this because you want to find out more about preventing panic attacks. The reality is that panic attacks are real, but they are just one of many types of anxiety disorders. It’s how a person deals with those panicky feelings that determines if anxiety is ruling your life or not.

Sadly, for a growing percentage of society, the impact of anxiety and panic attacks are very real, and that only reflects cases that are reported. One common myth is that having a panic attack somehow makes you a weak person.

Because of this, many people get so embarrassed and hide their anxiety, as they don’t want to seem weak.

Truth be told, everyone has had feelings of anxiousness or fear at some time or another. For instance, it’s quite normal to feel anxious when starting a new job, moving house or asking your bank manager for a loan. It’s how you handle normal anxiety that is the problem. If you let your anxious thoughts overwhelm you that’s when panic attacks can happen.

In addition, what is really alarming is that we are seeing more panic attacks in children because they are also affected by anxiety due to the stress of exams and peer pressure.

The physical symptoms of anxiety panic attacks are very real to the person having one and very scary. Pins and needles, heart pounding, and feeling faint are some of the main symptoms that are experienced. It’s no exaggeration to say that it sometimes feels like you are going to die when you are having one. What’s even worse is that they often happen in public places, which is probably due to the increased anxiety of being among crowds. It’s bad enough being at home with your family while having a panic attack but infinitely worse when it Read the rest of this entry »

Majority of people have no idea on how to deal with mental illnesses such as stress, depression, anxiety or panic attack. Hence, they will look for the easiest and most popular way, which is taking medication

Generally, there are few reasons why people may consider taking medication as their primary remedy for these illnesses. – Powerful control over sickness – Well established brand by commercial – Convenient to bring – Guaranteed no side effects – Moreover if problem can be diminishing by swallow a tiny tablet, then it is just incredibly fantastic!

Before taking any of these drugs, you have to realize the following:

o Control rather than cure
Medication are truly useful to relief yourself from torment of anxiety or panic. It is able to let you come out from the darkness and stable down your mind. However, the problem is only solved temporary.

Prescribed medication only masks the root cause of panic attacks, which only meant for temporary control rather than cure. Essential solution is to discover the root cause of why your body is reacting such a way instead of covering it up with the little tablet.

o It never ends
Simon is someone accompanying you every time you are feeling down or helpless, he gives you direction when you are lost, lonely or panic. Day after day, you can not live without him because he is the angel of your life.

Above is just an implication I want to express. What will happen if Simon equivalent to panic control drug?

Prescription medications provide relief but at the same time, are addictive. You will continuously rely to these drugs even if you should not.

The vital solution is to find out the root cause and treat it with proper ways.

o Worse case
Anyone who had taken the medication for years will Read the rest of this entry »

Anxiety disorders are very common these days. Many people experience these attacks in small ways when faced with everyday stress. For instance, when a student has not studied properly for an exam, she might feel “anxious” about taking the test. These feelings are perfectly normal and usually fade quickly. But this type of everyday anxiety becomes abnormal when we develop an aversion to normal life situations, and the problem begins limiting our life in lots of ways. This is normally what we mean when we say someone has a “problem” with anxiety panic attacks.

Anxiety-related panic attacks are unintentional, unpredictable and groundless. They can become chronic, and can occur anytime during the normal course of the day. Symptoms of anxiety vary from person to person, of course. One sufferer may get anxious going to parties; while another may be terrified to drive a car, or travel beyond their “comfort zone.” But all anxiety tends to have one common factor: a persistent fear of facing otherwise normal life situations.

Emotions play a great role in anxiety. Emotional symptoms include apprehension towards certain events or places, or difficulty concentrating–even embarrassing physical symptoms such as irritable bowel syndrome are often associated with anxiety and panic attacks. Other common emotionally-based symptoms include heart palpitations, rapid heartbeat, perspiration, migraine headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath, flu-like soreness and a tingling sensation in the arms and legs.

Anxiety attacks are usually triggered by something, even if they feel like they “came out of the blue.” But often, the initial cause of the attacks is not easy to discern. Anxiety and Panic Attacks can become a chronic problem that build up over time, so it may not seem obvious in the moment why you are experiencing the symptoms.

For this reason, one of the best methods of overcoming anxiety is to make small but consistent changes in your everyday life. This is a proactive approach which recognizes one little-known but critically important fact: anxiety panic attacks are NOT a “condition” or “disease,” they are a symptom of an imbalance in your life.

Because of this, self-help strategies can prove very useful in overcoming anxiety problems for most sufferers. Developing a more balanced (and positive) outlook towards life is a good first step, and even small improvements in your daily “thinking habits” can lead to very noticeable results.

Medications, including drugs like benzodiazepines or anti-anxiety SSRI’s (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) are often used to control anxiety–with mixed results. Medication can be helpful, especially when the individual is dealing with a severe and critical situation; but many experts feel that the use of medications is not a viable long-term treatment, and recommend less invasive options like practicing meditation, yoga therapy and mental relaxation exercises etc.

These types of treatments can be empowering for many anxiety sufferers because they encourage self-reliance and help foster a sense of confidence that the individual can cope with the inevitable stresses of life, without relying on medication or other “quick fixes,” which do nothing to restore balance to life long-term, or lessen the chances that the individual will experience anxiety panic attacks in the future.

Let’s first talk about what our panic attacks and what are social anxiety disorder. A social anxiety disorder is a fear of social interaction and other aspects of your social life. It can also be a fear of when being confronted or a fear of being put in a challenging situation. A panic attack can occur if at any moment. What will happen in a panic attack is a person’s heart will start to raise, you can start to sweat, you can feel lightheaded and there are many other symptoms that arise when a panic attack is happening. There can be underlying mental disorders like depression that can effect the panic attacks and social anxiety disorder.

So if you can see that these two working together can ruin a person’s life. Having a anxiety panic attacks in a social situation or out in society can be devastating. When this occurs the person having the attack can be humiliated and never feel right in a social situation. That is what happens when you suffer from social anxiety disorder and panic attack. A person is going to start to avoid those social situations that bring on the panic attack. Thus a social anxiety disorder will start to occur.

There are many people who will suffer from a social anxiety disorder for the majority of their lives but will be able to hide it. What is going to happen is to suffer is going to avoid a social situations that heightened their anxiety. Sometimes this person can almost seem rude or they may seem like loners. When in fact they are suffering from social anxiety disorder which is much more serious and needs immediate attention.

One Read the rest of this entry »

What is a Panic Attack?

A panic attack is a sudden, out of the blue feeling of extreme fear and discomfort. It comes most unexpectedly and without any warning and you can feel your heart beating fast, feel dizzy, breathless, choked or as if you are going crazy or going to die.

What is Panic Disorder?

A person is diagnosed as having panic disorder if he has recurrent episodes of panic attacks and develops a fear of having another attack. Many times the patient will convince himself/herself so fervently that they are dying that many sufferers often feel the need to go to the emergency room and get tested. Even though this disorder is easily as well as successfully treatable, if it is not diagnosed it can become very debilitating to the individual.

Learn more on Panic Attacks and Panic Disorders

Panic disorder strikes between 3 and 6 million Americans, and is twice as common in women as in men. It can appear at any age in children or in the elderly but most often it begins in young adults.

Symptoms of a Panic Attack

In a panic attack symptoms develop abruptly and usually reach their peak within 10 minutes. Some of the common symptoms include:

a) Palpitations

b) Sweating

c) Trembling

d) Shortness of breath

e) Chest pain or discomfort

f) Nausea

g) Dizziness

h) Fear of losing control

i) Fear of dying

Treatment for Panic Disorder

Panic disorder often responds to treatment with medication, therapy, or a combination of both.

Cognitive/behavioral therapy is a relatively new treatment for panic that has been shown to be successful. Read the rest of this entry »