Panic Attacks
Ever freaked out without warning or been struck down by unexplainable terror? One in eight people suffer from panic attacks, often when they least expect it.
What is it?
A panic attack is sparked by an involuntary quickening in your breathing rate, triggered by stress and/or anxiety. As you breathe faster, you take in more oxygen - speeding up the heart rate. This increases adrenalin levels, a natural stimulant in the body, which effectively worries the mind into a state of alert. The resulting attack can last for a matter of seconds or sometimes minutes, and involve some of the following symptoms:
- Dizziness and nausea
- Hot and cold flushes
- Faintness
- Trembling
- Hyperventilation
- Diarrhoea
- Heart palpitations and a tight sensation in the chest
- Confusion
- Feelings of impending disaster or death
Regaining control
If you feel you're about to lose it, try out this simple exercise:
- Take long, deep breaths.
- Fill your lungs, count to three and exhale slowly.
- Repeat until the feelings of panic pass.
Avoid a repeat by reducing your stress levels. Get work into perspective, learn to relax and shape up your lifestyle:
- Eat properly
- Sleep regularly
- Exercise frequently
- Cut down on alcohol, caffeine and other drugs.
- In the long term, sufferers can be effectively treated with a combination of medication and therapy.
- Counselling programmes aim to help identify potential triggers for an attack (ie a place, phobia or state of mind) and enable sufferers to minimise the risks.
Updated: 11/09/2009
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