DEALING WITH PANIC ATTACKS AND SIGNS OF ANXIETY

signs of anxiety

If you have panic attacks or signs of anxiety, it may help to comfort you that you are not alone! You’re not even one in a million. In America, it is estimated that almost 5% of the population have signs of anxiety.

For some, it may be the infrequent panic attacks that only crop up in particular situations-like when having to speak in front of others, while, for other people, it can be so frequent and recurring that it inhibits them from leaving their home. Frequent panic attacks often develop into what medical physicians refer to as an “anxiety disorder.”

Treating Signs of Anxiety

There are many ways of coping with an anxiety disorder. Some may not work for you, but others just might. It helps to know some of the most common coping techniques for dealing with panic attacks when they begin.

Your first step is to recognize when a panic attack is about to begin. When you have enough of them, you start to really pay attention to the tingling sensation, the shortness of breath, and the disconnection from the real life around you.

Many people I talk to wonder what that disconnection is like. They have a hard time understanding it. Those of us who have panic attacks are all too familiar with it. It’s like you can look at a solid object and see that it is there. You know it’s there, but a part of your mind doubts that it really IS there.

You may find yourself reaching out to touch that object just to be sure. You feel like you’re not a part of the world around you. It’s as if you are just a spectator in your own life with no control over anything around you.

Believe me, this is a horrible feeling.

So how do you start trying to combat your panic attacks? What if I told you the trick to ending panic and anxiety attacks is to WANT to have one. That sounds strange, even contradictory, doesn’t it? But the want really does help push it away.

Does this mean that you should be able to bring on a panic attack at this very moment? Absolutely not! What it means is that when you are afraid of something – in this case a panic attack – it will more than likely appear and wreak havoc. When you stand up to the attack, your chances of fending it off are much greater.

If you resist a situation out of fear, the fear around that issue will persist. How do you stop resisting-you move directly into it, into the path of the anxiety, and by doing so it cannot persist.

Alternative Methods of Handling Signs of Anxiety

In essence what this means is that if you daily voluntarily seek to have a panic attack, you cannot have one. Try in this very moment to have a panic attack and I will guarantee you cannot. You may not realize it but you have always decided to panic. You make the choice by saying this is beyond my control whether it be consciously or sub-consciously.

Another way to appreciate this is to imagine having a panic attack as like standing on a cliff’s edge. The anxiety seemingly pushes you closer to falling over the edge. To be rid of the fear you must metaphorically jump. You must jump off the cliff edge and into the anxiety and fear and all the things that you fear most.

How do you jump? You jump by wanting to have a panic attack. You go about your day asking for anxiety and panic attacks to appear.

Your real safety is the fact that a panic attack will never harm you. That is a medical fact. You are safe, the sensations are wild but no harm will come to you. Your heart is racing but no harm will come to you. The jump becomes nothing more than a two foot drop! It’s perfectly safe.

Anxiety causes an imbalance in your life whereby all of the mental worry creates a top-heavy sensation. All of your focus is moved from the center of your body to the head. Schools of meditation often like to demonstrate an example of this top-heavy imbalance by showing how easily the body can lose its sense of center.

The key to overcoming panic attacks is to relax. That’s easy to say but difficult to do. A good way to do this is to concentrate on your breathing making sure it is slow and steady. One of the first signs of a panic attack is difficulty breathing, and you may find yourself panting to catch a breath. When you focus on making those breaths even, your heart rate will slow down and the panic will subside.

Breathing more slowly and deeply has a calming effect. A good way to breathe easier is to let all the air out of your lungs. This forces your lungs to reach for a deeper breath next time. Continue to focus on your out-breath, letting all the air out of your lungs and soon you’ll find your breathing is deeper and you feel calmer.

Ideally, you want to take the focus off the fact that you are having a panic attack. Try to press your feet, one at a time, into the ground. Feel how connected and rooted they are to the ground.

An even better way is to lie down with your bottom near a wall. Place your feet against the wall (your knees are bent) and press your feet one at a time into the wall. If you can breathe in as you press your foot against the wall, and breathe out as you release it, it will be more effective. You should alternate between your feet. Do this for 10 – 15 minutes or until the panic subsides.

Use all of your senses to take full notice of what you see, hear, feel, and smell in your environment. This will help you to remain present. Panic is generally associated with remembering upsetting events from the past or anticipating something upsetting in the future. Anything that helps keep you focused in the present will be calming. Try holding a pet; looking around your room and noticing the colors, textures, and shapes; listening closely to the sounds you hear; call a friend; or smell the smells that are near you.

Many people strongly advocate aromatherapy to deal with panic and anxiety. Lavender can have an especially calming and soothing effect when you smell it. You can find essential oil of lavender at many stores. Keep it handy and take a sniff when you start feeling anxious.

Try putting a few drops of lavender essence oil into some oil (olive or grape seed oil will do) and rub on your body. Keep a prepared mixture in a dark glass bottle for when you need it. You can even prepare several bottles, with a small one to carry with you.

Other essential oils known to help panic and panic attacks are helichrysum, frankincense, and marjoram. Smell each of them, and use what smells best to you, or a combination of your favorite oils mixed in olive or grape seed oil.

You may want to prepare yourself BEFORE a panic attack happens. When you’re not in a panicked state, make a list of the things that you’re afraid will happen. Then write out calming things that tell you the opposite of your fears. Then you can repeat these things to yourself when the panic starts to come.

Prepare a list of things to do in case of panicked feelings, and it will be ready for you when you need it. Fill it with lots of soothing messages and ideas of calming things to do. I find this to be a very helpful tool and am never without my small notebook that has these positive affirmations in it.

Panic can be a very scary thing to go through, especially if you’re alone. Preparing for when the panic comes can really help reduce the panic, and even sometimes help to prevent it.

Another great tool to combating signs of anxiety and stress is to use visualization. Visualization is a great way to treat panic attacks.

Panic Attack Help – How to Get Your Life Back by Ending Panic Attacks

By Renee Pullman

If you are looking for panic attack help then the best thing I can tell you is you can cure this thing and make the attacks a thing of the past. Get excited as you read every word of this article because the ideas are simple but the effects really help.

Panic attacks of one form or another affect millions of people. Many try drugs and therapy and have found that more often than not that these are experimental. Yes there is help there but it is a long trial and error process where various drugs are tried and discarded hoping to find “the one” that will help.

Most of us don’t have time for that kind of approach and instead need to come to a quick understanding of the cause of the attacks and then on to how to overcome Them. This is not to say that the approach we are discussing is instant but it can quickly help you begin to control the attacks as you begin to bring the intensity down.

Panic attacks are caused by anxiety and a fear of something. This causes both emotional and physical symptoms. The symptoms of an attack can include shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, restlessness, and sweating. You must understand and accept what is going on in order to beat panic attacks. Once you know that you are having an attack you will begin to gain control over yourself and make it go away faster.

Often you must take a counter-intuitive approach to things and panic attacks are no different. Learn that it is an attack and just accept it: OK, it’s an attack and then distract yourself a little. Reassure yourself that you are in control. Communicate with your body the things you are feeling and say, “OK this is only a panic attack and I feel” – then describe a feeling. Talk to yourself and tell yourself to “let go” and your body will begin to respond. You need to just do this and not be concerned with what actually happens with the feeling. It may take a couple of times to get things to kick in.

Sometimes preparing a list of things to think of and focus on while you are having attacks is helpful. After all when one of those things hits it is difficult to engage in creative thinking – but you can remember things. So a list of things to bring to mind can be a huge help. Make it detailed so you can just pull the items out when your mind is engaged in trying to fight off the panic. If you look to yourself for help and demand more of yourself than just being a victim of the attacks then you are on your way to the best panic attack help.

I invite you to find the panic attack help that you are looking for. Discover the drug-free way to stop anxiety panic attacks (it is not always the logical process that we expect). Get instant access to our panic attack help website: http://www.stopapanicattackfast.com.

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Free Yourself From Panic Disorders

By Renee Pullman

Most of us experience some form of anxiety on a daily basis. Even so many are unable to appreciate the plight of those who suffer anxiety or panic attacks. These attacks suddenly are upon the victim and put them out of control with a variety of symptoms including heart attack, suffocation, and many more. When the attack is over the symptoms end and there is no physical damage, yet life is disrupted and the victim is left with a fear of future attacks. There is a way to treat and overcome panic attacks.

Fear Unleashed, Panic Attack Physical Symptoms

These attacks can come out of nowhere. This is perhaps the most difficult part about panic attacks. Here you are going crazy trying to figure out why you are losing control and what is triggering the fear, the chest pain, and all the rest. It is also possible that a medical condition unleashes the fear and you should check on that. But if otherwise you have a clean bill of health then it’s time to find a treatment that will help you break free of these panic attacks forever.

Reducing stress is one of the effective treatments for panic attacks. Stress reduction can also have an overall positive effect on your health. Relaxation can do things for you like reduce blood pressure and generally make you a happier person. Breathing exercises like those taught in Yoga can go along way to help you. If you consider that stress is the gasoline that drives the panic attack car, then you can see the real benefit.

Panic Attacks And Meditation, The Relaxation Response

Meditation is a good way to reduce stress. There is Yoga meditation based on breath but there are also simpler, effective ways to meditate. Dr. Herbert Benson published a book called “The Relaxation Response.” Dr. Benson describes a simple method that releases stress and thereby helps to physically heal the body. Using this method you sit upright and breathe out – breathe in – breathe out and each time you breathe out you say the word “one.” Stretch it out like: “Oneeeeeeee. “Say it either to yourself or aloud and as you continue to do this work on slowing your breathing by making your breaths in and out longer. Continue for 20 minutes or so and do it everyday. You will find your stress going down and your life improving.

Reducing stress will help is a good way to begin to treat and overcome panic attacks. As you begin to feel an attack coming on go into your breathing and repeating the word one. This will distract you and help break the anxiety cycle that brings on full blown attacks. As you practice this you will be able to remain panic free for longer and longer periods of time.

Discover the drug-free way to stop panic anxiety attacks (it is not always the logical process that we expect). Get instant access to our panic attack help website: http://www.stopapanicattackfast.com/go

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By Renee Pullman

Anxiety attacks or panic attacks are some of the most misunderstood conditions. Often people shut themselves away because they also develop a social phobia. Sufferers are often accused of faking the condition because it makes no sense to many around them. This is especially true if the condition has lasted over months or years.

If you suffer anxiety attacks or you are close to someone who does then perhaps you are confused about all of the treatment options. Maybe you have tried various things and yet the problem persists and you don’t know where to turn. With therapy, drugs, and medication behind you perhaps it’s time to turn to a natural cure.

Anxiety attacks can ruin your life, it is an emotional roller coaster. The attacks can cause physical symptoms, physical pain, high blood pressure, tingling sensations, pounding heart, and even heart palpitations. The longer the problem persists the worse it may get you may even fear dying.

The natural approach to anxiety attacks asks you to look at where your fears are coming from, finding what causes panic. What do you think about, what are you doing when they come. Can you find common triggers for the attacks, can you notice when the attacks begin and what is going through your mind as they begin? It also involves learning not to fear the attacks. Regardless of what your mind is telling you, you are perfectly safe and you need to program yourself to remember that in the midst of your attack.

There may be several triggers for your attacks – have problems backed up at work, is something causing you to feel overwhelmed? Are their people you don’t want to face? These things can lead to worry and trigger an anxiety attack.

Worry solves nothing and most of the time the thing you worry about never happens anyway. Worry usually shuts people down and shutting down means any potential problems are not being addressed. Sitting idly by and torturing yourself with your mind will not change anything. To change anything you have to take action. Take note of what’s going on and how it makes you feel but realize that if there is a real issue behind things you will need to do something to fix it.

Finding an anxiety cure that is right for you possibly means trying different methods until you find one that works. That said, you can save a lot of time by doing research and see what effective treatments are working for others, what different methods work to cure panic anxiety attacks.

I invite you to learn more about an anxiety cure and how to stop anxiety panic attacks (it is not always the logical process that we expect).

Get instant access to our Stop Panic Attacks website: http://www.stopapanicattackfast.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Renee_Pullman
http://EzineArticles.com/?Anxiety-Cure—Banish-Physical-Symptoms-of-Anxiety&id=3539427

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By Renee Pullman

If you suffer panic attacks then you understand that most other people can’t understand at all what you are going through. These attacks are destructive because your life shuts down as your fear increases not only for the things that trigger the attacks but also for the attacks themselves.

Panic attacks feed themselves – symptoms from heart palpitations, to difficulty breathing, to extreme terror happen in the course of the attack. They come at unexpected times, times that are impossible to predict and after they begin, they start they escalate. Most sufferers don’t have the tools to really stop a panic attack and they try to fight it while it runs and hope that it ends soon.

Did you know there are ways to end panic attacks for good, ways that don’t require medication and troublesome long term treatments? You can learn the cycles of panic and how to end the fear.

Ending panic attacks begins with finding out what triggers them. It can be situational like going to a stressful job or getting on a plane. It could even be triggered by what you are eating, side effects of medicine, or a random thought. These triggers begin the attacks and the sufferer begins to go out of control, not feeling safe. As the attacks continue the sufferer begins to live in fear of the attacks. Ending the attacks becomes an important objective because the attacks can destroy your life.

High anxiety and stress trigger the attacks. Once you begin to understand these triggers, the stresses, the fears, you can begin to treat the attacks. There are several approaches to ending the attacks, some choose medication, there are self-help treatments, and there is doing nothing.

Medication has it’s own issues. The side effects are sometimes severe and often you have to go through an experimental process as your doctor begins trying one medication after another in order to find something that may help you. The operative words are “may help you.” There are no guarantees in this treatment.

Doing nothing will usually consign you to a lifetime of suffering. It may even keep you locked in at home like some kind of urban hermit as you privately suffer at home – lonely and scared.

If you choose self-help to end panic attacks then you can come out of this viscous cycle and not have to take pills everyday, pills that dull the senses. You don’t have to have that and you can be OK everyday. Once this self-help way of ending attacks begins to work it will keep working for the rest of your life. You can end panic attacks without drugs.

I invite you to learn more about a panic-anxiety cure and how to end panic attacks (it is not always the logical process that we expect).

Get instant access to our End Panic Attacks website: http://www.stopapanicattackfast.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Renee_Pullman
http://EzineArticles.com/?End-Panic-Attacks—Natural-Methods-to-Treat,-Control-and-Cure-Panic-Attacks&id=3579889

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You’ve had chest pains, difficulty breathing, and a black out.  Your doctor tells you that your heat is fine…

Now you are searching for what happened to you.  Those are all symptom’s of what is commonly known as a panic attack or an anxiety attack.  Here are some of the most common symptoms of panic attacks.

* Palpitations * a pounding heart, or an accelerated heart rate * Sweating * Trembling or shaking

* Shortness of breath

* A choking sensation

* Chest pain or discomfort

* Nausea or stomach cramps

* Derealization (a feeling of unreality)

* Fear of losing control or going crazy

* Fear of dying Numbness or a tingling sensation

* Chills or hot flashes

(Source: American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) 2000 Washington, DC.)

To Learn More about the Panic Attacks Symptoms visit www.StopAPanicAttackFast.com/go

by Renee Pullman

A self-help treatment for panic attack is possible but you need to go in prepared.  Don’t try to consider what all of this means in the middle of the attack, study it out now and make if part of you so it flows naturally when needed.

>> How To Stop A Panic Attack …In Less Than 5 Minutes

Although it is not advisable to diagnose yourself with panic attack, it is really not sensible to wait until your supposed “attack” is over before you do something about it. Here are the things you must know so that when you feel that you are having an attack, you know what to do:

Understand what panic attack is all about. Awareness is the most important weapon to combat panic attacks because when you feel or know that you are under an attack, it is much easier for you to counter the effects of the symptoms that go along with it. Remember this: panic attacks can happen to anyone. It can happen to stressed and depressed person as well as happy and healthy ones. It can happen without warning, without any apparent reason.

Triggers can also cause irrational and exaggerated fear and anxiety. Chemical imbalance in the body (low serotonin and low progesterone levels) can trigger an attack. And while there are so many studies that suggest some causes of panic attacks, the condition is still not fully understood.

Know its symptoms. For most many people, there is no easy telling whether or not they are experiencing a panic attack during the moment of attack since it is difficult for them to rationalize things and to differentiate what is real from the unreal. While this is the case, it is not really an excuse. Here are the symptoms of panic attacks: heartbeat or palpitation, chest pain, hyperventilation or shortness of breath, stomach churning, upset stomach, trembling and shaking, muscle tension, sweating, dizziness and light-headedness, hot or cold flashes, tingling sensation or numbness, fear of dying, going crazy or losing control and feeling detached from the surroundings. Take note that people react to triggers differently, thus symptoms may vary from person to person.

Practice deep breathing. Deep breathing during an attack is the most effective way to reduce the symptoms you are experiencing as well as divert your attention from the fearful thought. Breathe in deeply for 3 slow counts, hold your breath for 3 slow counts, and breathe out for another 3 slow counts. Repeat this process until you feel you are calm. You can also breathe into a paper bag. This reason for this is that re-breathing your carbon dioxide helps correct the blood acid level that had been disturbed by excessive breathing.

Stay positive. While it is easier said than done, staying positive during an attack will speed up your recovery. Let the situation flow while keeping in mind that it will going to pass. An attack peaks for 5 to 10 minutes and rarely extends for more than half an hour so do not think that you are going crazy (or going to die) even if it feels that you are going crazy (or going to die).

Avoid unnecessary stress. While you cannot avoid every stressful situation and it is also unhealthy to turn your back on situations that need to be addressed, avoiding unnecessary stress help reduce the chances of you experiencing an attack. Stay away from people who stress you out, from relationship that causes stress, and situations that get you tensed.

Learn to say “no” if you have other much important things to do; do not work for extended hours; do not accept additional work if you know you cannot do it properly, etc.

Learn About The Treatment For Panic Attacks

The short and obvious answer: panic attacks are caused by high anxiety. But, what exactly is anxiety? Understanding how anxiety crops up will help you defeat panic attacks.

>> How To Stop A Panic Attack …In Less Than 5 Minutes

One of the biggest myths surrounding anxiety is that it is harmful and can lead to a number of various life-threatening conditions.

Definition of Anxiety

Anxiety is defined as a state of apprehension or fear resulting from the anticipation of a real or imagined threat, event, or situation. It is one of the most common human emotions experienced by people at some point in their lives.

However, most people who have never experienced a panic attack, or extreme anxiety, fail to realize the terrifying nature of the experience. Extreme dizziness, blurred vision, tingling and feelings of breathlessness—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

When these sensations occur and people do not understand why, they feel they have contracted an illness, or a serious mental condition. The threat of losing complete control seems very real and naturally very terrifying.

Fight/Flight Response: One of the root causes of panic attacks?

I am sure most of you have heard of the fight/flight response as an explanation for one of the root causes of panic attacks. Have you made the connection between this response and the unusual sensations you experience during and after a panic attack episode?

Anxiety is a response to a danger or threat. It is so named because all of its effects are aimed toward either fighting or fleeing from the danger. Thus, the sole purpose of anxiety is to protect the individual from harm. This may seem ironic given that you no doubt feel your anxiety is actually causing you great harm…perhaps the most significant of all the causes of panic attacks.

However, the anxiety that the fight/flight response created was vital in the daily survival of our ancient ancestors—when faced with some danger, an automatic response would take over that propelled them to take immediate action such as attack or run. Even in today’s hectic world, this is still a necessary mechanism. It comes in useful when you must respond to a real threat within a split second.

Anxiety is a built-in mechanism to protect us from danger. Interestingly, it is a mechanism that protects but does not harm—an important point that will be elaborated upon later.

The Physical Manifestations of a Panic Attack: Other pieces of the puzzle to understand the causes of panic attacks. Nervousness and Chemical Effects…

When confronted with danger, the brain sends signals to a section of the nervous system. It is this system that is responsible for gearing the body up for action and also calms the body down and restores equilibrium. To carry out these two vital functions, the autonomic nervous system has two subsections, the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.

Although I don’t want to become too “scientific,” having a basic understanding of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system will help you understand the causes of panic attacks.

The sympathetic nervous system is the one we tend to know all too much about because it primes our body for action, readies us for the “fight or flight” response, while the parasympathetic nervous system is the one we love dearly as it serves as our restoring system, which returns the body to its normal state.

When either of these systems is activated, they stimulate the whole body, which has an “all or nothing” effect. This explains why when a panic attack occurs, the individual often feels a number of different sensations throughout the body.

The sympathetic system is responsible for releasing the adrenaline from the adrenal glands on the kidneys. These are small glands located just above the kidneys. Less known, however, is that the adrenal glands also release adrenaline, which functions as the body’s chemical messengers to keep the activity going. When a panic attack begins, it does not switch off as easily as it is turned on. There is always a period of what would seem increased or continued anxiety, as these messengers travel throughout the body. Think of them as one of the physiological causes of panic attacks, if you will.

After a period of time, the parasympathetic nervous system gets called into action. Its role is to return the body to normal functioning once the perceived danger is gone. The parasympathetic system is the system we all know and love, because it returns us to a calm relaxed state.

When we engage in a coping strategy that we have learned, for example, a relaxation technique, we are in fact willing the parasympathetic nervous system into action. A good thing to remember is that this system will be brought into action at some stage whether we will it or not. The body cannot continue in an ever-increasing spiral of anxiety. It reaches a point where it simply must kick in, relaxing the body. This is one of the many built-in protection systems our bodies have for survival.

You can do your best with worrying thoughts, keeping the sympathetic nervous system going, but eventually it stops. In time, it becomes a little smarter than us, and realizes that there really is no danger. Our bodies are incredibly intelligent—modern science is always discovering amazing patterns of intelligence that run throughout the cells of our body. Our body seems to have infinite ways of dealing with the most complicated array of functions we take for granted. Rest assured that your body’s primary goal is to keep you alive and well.

Not so convinced?

Try holding your breath for as long as you can. No matter how strong your mental will is, it can never override the will of the body. This is good news—no matter how hard you try to convince yourself that you are gong to die from a panic attack, you won’t. Your body will override that fear and search for a state of balance. There has never been a reported incident of someone dying from a panic attack.

Remember this next time you have a panic attack; he causes of panic attacks cannot do you any physical harm. Your mind may make the sensations continue longer than the body intended, but eventually everything will return to a state of balance. In fact, balance (homeostasis) is what our body continually strives for.

The interference for your body is nothing more than the sensations of doing rigorous exercise. Our body is not alarmed by these symptoms. Why should it be? It knows its own capability. It’s our thinking minds that panic, which overreact and scream in sheer terror! We tend to fear the worst and exaggerate our own sensations. A quickened heart beat becomes a heart attack. An overactive mind seems like a close shave with schizophrenia. Is it our fault? Not really—we are simply diagnosing from poor information.

Cardiovascular Effects Activity in the sympathetic nervous system increases our heartbeat rate, speeds up the blood flow throughout the body, ensures all areas are well supplied with oxygen and that waste products are removed. This happens in order to prime the body for action.

A fascinating feature of the “fight or flight” mechanism is that blood (which is channelled from areas where it is currently not needed by a tightening of the blood vessels) is brought to areas where it is urgently needed.

For example, should there be a physical attack, blood drains from the skin, fingers, and toes so that less blood is lost, and is moved to “active areas” such as the thighs and biceps to help the body prepare for action.

This is why many feel numbness and tingling during a panic attack-often misinterpreted as some serious health risk-such as the precursor to a heart attack. Interestingly, most people who suffer from anxiety often feel they have heart problems. If you are really worried that such is the case with your situation, visit your doctor and have it checked out. At least then you can put your mind at rest.

Respiratory Effects

One of the scariest effects of a panic attack is the fear of suffocating or smothering. It is very common during a panic attack to feel tightness in the chest and throat. I’m sure everyone can relate to some fear of losing control of your breathing. From personal experience, anxiety grows from the fear that your breathing itself would cease and you would be unable to recover. Can a panic attack stop our breathing? No.

A panic attack is associated with an increase in the speed and depth of breathing. This has obvious importance for the defense of the body since the tissues need to get more oxygen to prepare for action. The feelings produced by this increase in breathing, however, can include breathlessness, hyperventilation, sensations of choking or smothering, and even pains or tightness in the chest. The real problem is that these sensations are alien to us, and they feel unnatural.

Having experienced extreme panic attacks myself, I remember that on many occasions, I would have this feeling that I couldn’t trust my body to do the breathing for me, so I would have to manually take over and tell myself when to breathe in and when to breathe out. Of course, this didn’t suit my body’s requirement of oxygen and so the sensations would intensify—along with the anxiety. It was only when I employed the technique I will describe for you later, did I let the body continue doing what it does best—running the whole show.

Importantly, a side-effect of increased breathing, (especially if no actual activity occurs) is that the blood supply to the head is actually decreased. While such a decrease is only a small amount and is not at all dangerous, it produces a variety of unpleasant but harmless symptoms that include dizziness, blurred vision, confusion, sense of unreality, and hot flushes.

Other Physical Effects of Panic Attacks:

Now that we’ve discussed some of the primary physiological causes of panic attacks, there are a number of other effects that are produced by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, none of which are in any way harmful.

For example, the pupils widen to let in more light, which may result in blurred vision, or “seeing” stars, etc. There is a decrease in salivation, resulting in dry mouth. There is decreased activity in the digestive system, which often produces nausea, a heavy feeling in the stomach, and even constipation. Finally, many of the muscle groups tense up in preparation for “fight or flight” and this results in subjective feelings of tension, sometimes extending to actual aches and pains, as well as trembling and shaking.

Overall, the fight/flight response results in a general activation of the whole bodily metabolism. Thus, one often feels hot and flushed and, because this process takes a lot of energy, the person generally feels tired and drained.

Mental Manifestations: Are the causes of panic attacks all in my head? is a question many people wonder to themselves.

The goal of the fight/flight response is making the individual aware of the potential danger that may be present. Therefore, when activated, the mental priority is placed upon searching the surroundings for potential threats. In this state one is highly-strung, so to speak. It is very difficult to concentrate on any one activity, as the mind has been trained to seek all potential threats and not to give up until the threat has been identified. As soon as the panic hits, many people look for the quick and easiest exit from their current surroundings, such as by simply leaving the bank queue and walking outside. Sometimes the anxiety can heighten, if we perceive that leaving will cause some sort of social embarrassment.

If you have a panic attack while at the workplace but feel you must press on with whatever task it is you are doing, it is quite understandable that you would find it very hard to concentrate. It is quite common to become agitated and generally restless in such a situation. Many individuals I have worked with who have suffered from panic attacks over the years indicated that artificial light—such as that which comes from computer monitors and televisions screens—can can be one of the causes of panic attacks by triggering them or worsen a panic attack, particularly if the person is feeling tired or run down.

This is worth bearing in mind if you work for long periods of time on a computer. Regular break reminders should be set up on your computer to remind you to get up from the desk and get some fresh air when possible.

In other situations, when during a panic attack an outside threat cannot normally be found, the mind turns inwards and begins to contemplate the possible illness the body or mind could be suffering from. This ranges from thinking it might have been something you ate at lunch, to the possibility of an oncoming cardiac arrest.

The burning question is: Why is the fight/flight response activated during a panic attack even when there is apparently nothing to be frightened of?

Upon closer examination of the causes of panic attacks, it would appear that what we are afraid of are the sensations themselves—we are afraid of the body losing control. These unexpected physical symptoms create the fear or panic that something is terribly wrong. Why do you experience the physical symptoms of the fight/flight response if you are not frightened to begin with? There are many ways these symptoms can manifest themselves, not just through fear.

For example, it may be that you have become generally stressed for some reason in your life, and this stress results in an increase in the production of adrenaline and other chemicals, which from time to time, would produce symptoms….and which you perceive as the causes of panic attacks.

This increased adrenaline can be maintained chemically in the body, even after the stress has long gone. Another possibility is diet, which directly affects our level of stress. Excess caffeine, alcohol, or sugar is known for causing stress in the body, and is believed to be one of the contributing factors of the causes of panic attacks (Chapter 5 gives a full discussion on diet and its importance).

Unresolved emotions are often pointed to as possible trigger of panic attacks, but it is important to point out that eliminating panic attacks from your life does not necessarily mean analyzing your psyche and digging into your subconscious. The “One Move” technique will teach you to deal with the present moment and defuse the attack along with removing the underlying anxiety that sparks the initial anxiety.

Learn more

http://budurl.com/StopAPanicAttackFast

Joe Barry is an international panic disorder coach. His informative site on all issues related to panic and anxiety attacks can be found here:http://budurl.com/StopAPanicAttackFast

This article is copywritten material

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