Panic attacks can appear suddenly, starting without warning, and often resulting in intense feelings of overwhelming fear. Symptoms include a racing heart, shortness of breath and nausea. They often have no obvious cause and can happen to anyone. Regular panic attacks may be a sign of panic disorder — a condition characterised by sudden and repeated attacks.
Panic attacks can happen for no obvious reason and with no clear triggers, but some are caused by genetic factors or short-term emotional triggers, such as bereavement, phobias or trauma. They can be distressing and when severe, result in debilitating effects on well-being and quality of life.
Expected panic attacks are caused by external stressors, such as phobias, but most panic attacks are the result of a slow build up over weeks or months of worry or concern.
Sudden unexpected panic attacks can cause acute and debilitating anxiety, often accompanied by severe painful and sometimes terrifying physical symptoms. Symptoms can include shortness of breath, hyperventilating, lightheadedness, a feeling of choking, or chest pain, a pounding or racing heart, shaking, sweating, headache, and nausea.
It’s not uncommon for first time sufferers to believe that they are having a heart attack or nervous breakdown. Some first-time sufferers believe that they might be dying.
However, there are ways to head off panic attacks before anxiety starts to spiral out of control. If you can recognise the symptoms of the onset of a panic attack, you can learn to manage it. You might be trembling and/or feeling faint or dizzy, but you can stop an attack taking hold by recognising the symptoms and dealing with them head on.
Five ways to stop anxiety spiralling out of control:
1. Focus on your breathing
When you feel a panic attack is about to happen, try to control the rhythm of your breathing, making it slower and more stable by slowly breathing in through your nose, holding your breath for two seconds, and then slowly breathing out through your mouth. As you breathe, ensure your stomach also expands as this helps to ensure the breathing isn’t shallow. If you can shift your focus and take your mind to a relaxing place
this will help to ease the symptoms.
2. Think of positive statements such as ‘my anxiety and panic will pass shortly… it won’t last.
3. Count 5 things you can sense
Your mind may be trying to process many thoughts during a panic attack. These will usually be negative, so rather than focusing on them, try to count something you can smell, something you can see, something you can hear, and something you can touch — and concentrate on and mentally explore these things.
4. Put your self in your own invisible cocoon or force-field
A repeated mantra, such as “I am in control and nothing can hurt me, nothing can harm me” will also help you stay in control and get you feeling normal again more quickly. Try to focus on the positive things in your life, even if they are memories of things past.
5. Remember, panic attacks are NOT life threatening, and often, you will recover just a quickly as the panic attack started.
