An anxiety attack is what? What connection does it have to panic disorder? Is it something you can manage? Here are the most prominent answers in this article.
Panic is one of the severe anxiety disorders that can affect anyone, and it is a sudden sense of fear, terror, or extreme discomfort, the inevitability of death, and unease, which can arise for no reason or because.
Many people experience panic attacks once or twice in their lives as a result of being exposed to a stressful situation, and they disappear after the situation has passed.
Recurrent, unexpected panic attacks that last just a few seconds are known as panic disorder. The prevalence of panic disorder ranges from 1.5 to 3%, and women are more likely than men to experience its symptoms in late adolescence and early adulthood.
Symptoms of a panic attack
The many physical symptoms of panic attacks are concentrated over a brief period of time and include:
- Increased heart rate .
- Shortness of breath.
- chest pain
- Nausea.
- Vertigo.
- Shivering.
- Fear of death or madness.
- Loss of control and control.
- The feeling of unreality.
Factors that increase the chance of having a panic attack
The following are the most crucial elements that raise the risk of experiencing a panic attack or panic disorder:
1. Genetic factors
Genetics and other biological factors raise a person's risk of developing these phobias.
2. Other factors
Other elements that raise the risk of experiencing a panic attack include:
- Sudden psychological panic.
- undergo surgery.
- life pressures
- Conflicts in the family.
- Exposure to childhood trauma.
- Physical or sexual assaults.
- severe stress
Methods for treating recurrent panic attacks
A panic attack can be treated and controlled with psychotherapy sessions, medication, or both, with a recovery rate of 65% for patients.
It is advised at the beginning to conduct a medical evaluation to find out if the disorder is due to general medical causes such as infection with some diseases, such as: thyroid disorders , hypoglycemia, adrenal cancer, asthma, and mitral valve injuries, or is it a result of the use of stimulants and drugs and the intake of stimulants in large quantities. . then pick the best course of action as follows:
- Pharmacotherapy
In cases of general anxiety as well as in the treatment of panic disorder, preventing and controlling its recurrence, pharmacological therapy is helpful and effective.
However, drug treatment must continue for a few months or longer, and contemporary anti-serotonin medications are efficient, secure, and non-addictive.
- Psychotherapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques are used in the psychological treatment of panic attacks. These techniques include psychological education about the nature of panic attacks, the causes of anxiety and panic, and how they are sustained through cognitive and behavioral-body feedback. They also aim to dispel common misconceptions about panic symptoms, such as "I will go crazy, or I will die, or I will lose control," and work to discuss and refute irrational beliefs that come with them.
Tips for dealing with panic attacks
Many people who experience panic attacks were able to control them by using the advice in the following list:
- using psychological therapy and sticking with sessions up until symptoms are under control and complications are avoided
- Recognize the temporary and harmless nature of the symptoms related to panic attacks.
- A seizure's symptoms can be relaxed and lessened by practising deep breathing while concentrating on your inhalation and exhalation and attempting to control them.
- avoiding concentrating on the condition and its accompanying symptoms in favour of other activities, such as moving around, touching things, and recalling happy memories.
- The patient will feel much more at ease if you repeat, "This is just a seizure and it will pass and I won't die."
- In addition to improving treatment outcomes, relaxation also aids in self-control and muscle control.
- Avoid triggers of anxiety such as smoking, alcohol, and stimulants.
- Yoga, meditation, and regular exercise can all help to reduce panic attack symptoms.
- Follow a healthy diet.
- enough sleep.