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Recognizing Sympthoms of Panic Attack

February 19th, 2008 by Lyle Richards Subscribe To Our Feed

Before talking about the sympthoms of panic attack, I will define some psychological terms that I will be talking about.

“Anxiety” is a natural state of worry or alarm that occurs in response to a stressor or a perceived threat. An “anxiety attack” in its simplest form is a period of time when anxiety is heightened and manifests in specific physiological symptoms. An anxiety attack can also be another term for a “panic attack,” which is an unexpected episode of irrational fear in which a number of physical symptoms are present. Panic attacks can be debilitating and may recur. If left untreated they can develop into Panic Disorder. This article will use the term anxiety attack as though referring to panic attacks. The sympthoms of panic attack and the treatment of these symptoms will also be listed.

Sympthoms of Panic Attack and Treatment
It is important to explain the cause of the sympthoms of panic attack before listing them. Worry to a certain extent is natural for human beings. However, the brain has its own method for combating worry when it becomes alarm due to a perceived threat. The brain’s amygdala produces adrenaline, a hormone that prepares the body to handle a fearful situation by either defending itself or by running away. This “fight or flight” response is a natural defense mechanism and helps humans in times of true stress or danger. The amygdala produces adrenaline whenever the brain perceives fear. Unfortunately, it cannot differentiate between irrational fear and true fear. If a person has a phobia, or an irrational fear of something specific such as spiders, the brain will still produce adrenaline though the person may not need to actually fight or flee. This results in too much of the hormone remaining in the bloodstream and produces the sympthoms of panic attack.

The sympthoms of panic attack are as follows:

- racing heart
- sweaty palms
- feeling of unreality
- numbness in the extremities
- hot or cold flashes
- chills
- nausea
- dry mouth.

Treatment of panic and anxiety attacks should begin with ruling out any medical conditions that may be causing the attacks. Next, lifestyle changes need to take place such as avoiding caffeine and smoking (which can cause anxiety), maintaining a healthy diet, and incorporating exercise and meditation into daily life.

Yoga is an great way to combat anxiety because it increases the relaxant hormone, serotonin. Medication and psychological therapy can also help with the sympthoms of panic attack. It is important to treat the sympthoms of panic attack before they develop into anxiety or panic disorders.

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