If you suffer from…
* Palpitations
* a pounding heart, or an accelerated heart
rate
* Sweating
* Trembling or shaking
* Shortness of breath
* A choking sensation
* Chest pain or discomfort
* Nausea or stomach cramps
* Derealization (a feeling of unreality)
* Fear of losing control or going crazy
* Fear of dying Numbness or a tingling
sensation
* Chills or hot flashes
(Source: American Psychiatric
Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth
Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) 2000 Washington, DC.)
…then you’ve experienced firsthand some of
the possible symptoms of a panic or anxiety attack. If you are reading this
page because a loved one suffers from these symptoms and you are trying to
understand or help, it’s hard to appreciate what they go through.
Just try to imagine what it feels like to
experience one, if you can.
Here is a typical example:
Standing in a supermarket queue, it’s been a
long wait but only one customer to go before you make it to the cashier. Wait,
what was that sensation? An unpleasant feeling forms in your throat, your chest
feels tighter, now a sudden shortness of breath, and what do you know—your
heart skips a beat. “Please, God, not here.”
A quick scan of the territory—is it
threatening? Four unfriendly faces queue behind, one person in front. Pins and
needles seem to prick you through your left arm, you feel slightly dizzy, and
then the explosion of fear as you dread the worst. You are about to have a
panic attack.
There is no doubt in your mind now that this
is going to be a big one. Okay, focus: Remember what you have been taught, and
it is time now to apply the coping techniques. Begin the deep breathing
exercise your doctor recommended. In through the nose, out through the mouth.
Think relaxing thoughts, and again, while breathing
in, think “Relax,” and then breathe out. But it doesn’t seem to be having any
positive effect; in fact, just concentrating on breathing is making you feel
self-conscious and more uptight.
Okay, coping technique 2:
Gradual muscle relaxation. Tense both
shoulders, hold for 10 seconds, then release. Try it again. No; still no
difference. The anxiety is getting worse and the very fact that you are out of
coping techniques worsens your panic. If only you were surrounded by your
family, or a close friend were beside you so you could feel more confident in
dealing with this situation.
Now, the adrenaline is really pumping through
your system, your body is tingling with uncomfortable sensations, and now the
dreaded feeling of losing complete control engulfs your emotions. No one around
you has any idea of the sheer terror you are experiencing. For them, it’s just
a regular day and another frustratingly slow queue in the supermarket.
You are out of options. Time for Plan C.
The most basic coping skill of all is
“fleeing.” Excuse yourself from the queue; you are slightly embarrassed as it
is now that it is your turn to pay. The cashier is looking bewildered as you
leave your shopping behind and stroll towards the door. There is no time for
excuses—you need to be alone. You leave the supermarket and get into your car
to ride it out alone. Could this be the big one? The one you fear will push you
over the edge mentally and physically. Ten minutes later the panic subsides.
It’s 10:30 a.m. How are you going to make it
through the rest of the day?
If you suffer from panic or anxiety attacks,
the above scenerio probably sounds very familiar. It may have even induced
feelings of anxiety and panic just reading it. The particular situations that
trigger your panic and anxiety may differ; maybe the bodily sensations are a
little different. Or maybe it happened to you for the first time on a plane, in
the dentist chair, or even at home, while doing nothing in particular.
If you have ever had what has become known as
a “panic attack,” take comfort in the fact that you are by no means alone.
A panic attack always comes with the acute
sense of impending doom. You feel you are either about to lose your mind or one
of your vital bodily functions is about to cease functioning and you will end
your days right there among the canned goods and frozen food.
You are by no means alone; you’re not even
one in a million. In America, it is estimated that almost 5% of the population
suffer from some form of anxiety disorder. For some, it may be the infrequent
panic attacks that only crop up in particular situations-like when having to
speak in front of others, while, for other people, it can be so frequent and
recurring that it inhibits them from leaving their home. Frequent panic attacks
often develop into what medical physicians refer to as an “anxiety disorder.”
One of the first steps to regaining control
of your life is getting helpful information. This site will give you that, and
more.
The beginning of your recovery starts here.
What you will learn is that there is a very good chance you are about to end
the cycle of panic attacks in your life. You will learn not only to regain the
carefree life you remember once having, but will also gain new confidence in
living. Your answer to living free from “panic” or “anxiety attacks” is at
hand.
This site demonstrates that the panic and
anxiety that you have experienced will be the very key to your courage and
success.
Begin the road to recovery by browsing
through the site. While many of you may have read almost everything you can
possibly read relating to panic and anxiety I assure you this site offers
something very effective.
Did you know…?
The key difference between someone who is
cured of panic attacks and those who are not is really very simple. The people
who are cured no longer fear panic attacks. I’ll try to show you how to be one
of these people as well.
What if I told you the trick to ending panic
and anxiety attacks is to want to have one. That sounds strange, even
contradictory, but let me explain.
The trick to panic attacks is wanting to have
one-the wanting pushes it away. Can you have a panic attack in this very
second? No!
You know the saying that “what you resist,
persists.” Well that saying applies perfectly to fear. If you resist a situation
out of fear, the fear around that issue will persist. How do you stop
resisting–you move directly into it, into the path of the anxiety, and by doing
so it cannot persist.
In essence what this means is that if you
daily voluntarily seek to have a panic attack, you cannot have one. Try in this
very moment to have a panic attack and I will guarantee you cannot. You may not
realize it but you have always decided to panic. You make the choice by saying
this is beyond my control.
Another way to appreciate this is to imagine
having a panic attack as like standing on a cliff’s edge. The anxiety seemingly
pushes you closer to falling over the edge.
To be rid of the fear you must metaphorically
jump. You must jump off the cliff edge and into the anxiety and fear and all
the things that you fear most.
How do you jump? You jump by wanting to have
a panic attack. You go about your day asking for anxiety and panic attacks to
appear.
Your real safety is the fact that a panic
attack will never harm you. That is medical fact. You are safe, the sensations
are wild but no harm will come to you. Your heart is racing but no harm will
come to you. The jump becomes nothing more than a two foot drop! Perfectly
safe.
Barry McDonagh is an
international panic disorder coach. His informative site on all issues related
to panic and anxiety attacks can be found here: www.panicportal.com
This article is copywritten
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