Take a moment, and imagine that you’re lying in bed, or sitting at your desk at work, when you suddenly notice that you’re having some pain in your chest. Everything seems to tighten up, you have a hard time breathing, your palms become sweaty and you start feeling a numbness throughout your body. Immediately, your mind starts racing, and you’re thinking “I am having a heart attack!” Once these thoughts start coming into your mind, your symptoms seem to increase even more. Has this ever happened to you? Have you had these symptoms only to rush to the emergency room, and be told it isn’t a heart attack? If you have, then you’re most likely one of the thousands of people who have experienced an anxiety attack.

Anxiety attacks can strike out of nowhere, showing up in physical symptoms in your body. They are accompanied by extreme worry, often made worse by the symptoms themselves starting. Sometimes they’ll happen during a time of extreme stress in the person’s life, appearing suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere. Other times, they’ll come on gradually, causing the person to notice small symptoms at first. The symptoms common with anxiety attacks include: shortness of breath, pain or tightness in your chest, tremors, dizziness, heart palpitations which you can feel strongly, nausea and vomiting, and feeling flushed or chilled. The symptoms are very scary to one who is experiencing them, and they genuinely feel that they are suffering from a physical problem, or even think they may be going crazy.

If you’ve ever suffered from an anxiety attack, it’s likely that it will happen again. Regular sufferers of these types of anxiety attacks have what is considered anxiety or panic disorders. This disorder causes the person to experience an excessive amount of anxiety at times that are not demanding this type of strong reaction. A phobia or irrational fear of a specific object or situation can cause an anxiety attack in certain people. Some anxiety attacks can be set off by stress, worry or just a random act. This is describes as “Generalized Anxiety Disorder,” which basically describes those who tend to worry excessively.

It’s important to get a proper diagnosis from a psychiatrist if you’re suffering from anxiety attacks, as they can become debilitating if not taken care of. Anxiety disorders are treatable, if the causes or triggers can be determined. When in the middle of an attack, you need to be able to calm yourself down, and try to relax. Try breathing exercises, or some method that calms you, even if it’s just to find something to distract yourself. Sometimes, you’ll just need to wait out the attack, if nothing is working.

For long term treatment of panic attacks, a good therapist is required. They can show you how to manage an attack as it occurs, and teach you to relax. There are also treatments available to prevent anxiety attacks from occurring, through some kind of therapy that’s specific to your situation, set up to teach you how to cope and manage your anxiety and fears. Dietary and other lifestyle changes may be recommended as well.

There are also prescription medications which can be prescribed if therapy is not helping. Usually, anxiety can be effectively treated with a certain class of antidepressants called SSRIs. A bonus to taking these medications is that they can work to relieve depression which is often associated with anxiety. The constant worrying that comes with anxiety can very easily lead to depression, which can be treated while taking these medicines. It’s important to remember that when starting to take one of these medications that they take some time before taking full effect. You can even see an increased occurrence of symptoms shortly after beginning treatment, so it’s vital to be monitored closely, as the risk of suicide can go up as well. There have also been some moderate to severe side effects associated with these medications.

The constant stress and worry in today’s society has caused more and more people to suffer from panic attacks. You aren’t alone, so don’t suffer alone. It’s actually a very common and treatable disorder, if you take the steps to get the help you need. You aren’t going crazy, and once you realize and accept that you need help, you’ll see a dramatic improvement in your quality of life.

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Joe Barry, a former sufferer of panic attacks has created a powerful technique for eliminating anxiety and panic attacks. Find out more by visiting his site: www.panicaway.com

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Eat better, move more, and believe in yourself!

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