Do you want to stop having panic attacks? If you are a sufferer the chances are that that you dream about what life would be like if you didn’t have to worry about taking a panic attack. This article aims to help you understand what is going on during an attack and gives an outline of the available treatment for panic disorders.
Panic attacks are an exaggeration of the body’s natural ‘fight or flight’ response to danger. Unfortunately they tend to occur when there is no real danger, and often when a sufferer is relaxing or even sleeping.
The heart rate increases, often causing a thumping feeling or palpitations. Sweating increases and the breathing rate gets faster. It feels like the room is closing in, or spinning, and there can be a choking sensation or nausea. The over-all feeling is of terror.
A panic sufferer is likely to want to make sure that they have an escape route in all situations, and will not like being in places where there are crowds of people or no easy and quick way out. A panic attack commonly lasts from 10 – 20 minutes but the experience can leave lasting memories, and if they are recurrent, as in panic disorder, they can lead to loss of confidence and avoidance behavior. Often panic disorder sufferers will avoid public transport, large sports venues, church services, public meetings, or large shops.
Several forms of therapy are suitable to help you stop having panic attacks. Your doctor may recommend tablets, and there are a selection of drugs that can be helpful in panic disorder. These include sedatives, beta-blockers, and antidepressants.
Alternatively, methods such as CBT or cognitive behavioral therapy have been shown to be helpful. This generally involves spending time with a therapist, looking into why panic attacks happen in the first place, and understanding the relationship between your thoughts about panic and the attacks themselves. Other treatments include relaxation therapy, breathing exercises, meditation, and hypnotherapy.
