Some people refer to panic attacks as anxiety attacks. The terms are inter-changable. Having a panic attack or an anxiety attack (whatever you want to call it) is very different from being stressed out.
Panic disorder like other mental health issues can be mild or major. Panic or anxiety attacks may occur one time a year or up to multiple times a day. They generally peak in about 10 minutes and can, but rarely do, last for several hours.
Panic or anxiety attacks are the number one mental health problem for women. In fact panic or anxiety attacks affect twice as many women as men. Anxiety attacks may have a sudden onset. However, in my experience, the person with sudden onset has generally been under extreme prolonged, or severe acute, stress.
Anxiety attacks are discrete periods of intense fear and anxiety that seem to come “out of the blue.” They cause both psychological and physical discomfort. Some examples of anxiety attack symptoms are…
- Derealization or depersonalization
- Discomfort or pain in chest
- Feeling like you’re choking
- Feeling like you’re going crazy
- Nausea or abdominal discomfort
- Heart palpitations or racing heart
- Think you’re going to die
- Sense of impending doom
- Trembling or shaking
- Shortness of breath
- Sweating/hot flushes
- Tingling sensations/numbness
An anxiety attack is only a symptom there are many reasons why someone might be experiencing anxiety symptoms. Therefore knowing the symptoms of a panic attack is not enough…its important to get to the root cause.
Help for Your Anxiety Attack Symptoms
One of the most helpful things you can do to manage anxiety is using relaxation techniques and listen to relaxing sounds from nature.