Overcoming Panic Attacks

06.11.2009 | Author: Simon Kaiser | Posted in Self Improvement

If you or someone you know is dealing with panic attacks, you know how debilitating and crippling they can be. Relaxation, medication; these are common prescriptions for panic attacks, but that just deals with the symptoms, not the root of the problem. There are ways to effectively end panic attacks, but if you want to know how to overcome panic attacks, you need some background information.

Panic attack symptoms according to the DSM-IV:

A discrete period of intense fear or discomfort, in which four (or more) of the following symptoms developed abruptly and reached a peak within 10 minutes:

  • Palpitations, pounding heart, or accelerated heart rate
  • Sweating
  • Trembling
  • Sensations of shortness of breath
  • Feeling of choking
  • Chest pain or discomfort
  • Nausea or abdominal distress
  • Feeling dizzy, lightheaded, or faint
  • Derealization (feelings of unreality) or depersonalization (being detached from oneself)
  • Fear of losing control or going crazy
  • Fear of dying
  • Paresthesias (numbness or tingling sensations)
  • Chills or hot flashes

A full blown panic attack is the result of  what is called a positive feedback loop. This is when a single symptom puts the sufferer into a tailspin bringing about more mental and physical symptoms, until it snowballs out of control.

And therein lies the solution. Panic attacks are, if anything, a thought disease. It’s by thinking about the negative consequences of that first symptom that the panic attack follows.

Here are two very useful coping mechanisms based on Cognitive-Behavioral therapy which could help

  1. Rational-Emotive (also know as REBT) This is a direct-action strategy where yo confront and change irrational beliefs. You recognize and change the way you construct your reality so that the things that bother you know and set you off now, won’t in the future
  2. Cognitive This is where you replace negative thoughts with positive ones. One identifies self-harming statements (e.g. “Oh no, not another bout. I’m never gonna get rid of this condition”) and changes them to more positive pro-action statements. It’s a sort of mental restructuring.

To read about my experiences with panic attacks – click here

To overcome it – click here

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