What is a Panic Attack?
Someone who suffers from an intense reaction to fear, which results in physical reactions, is known to be having a panic attack. A typical panic attack will start with breathing, or pulse quickening, and rapidly progress into a full panic attack. Individuals can sometimes be calmed with the help of reassuring support people, but sometimes medication is necessary to help calm the individual. Understanding the causes of panic attacks, the early signs, diagnosis criteria and therapy techniques are all important to fully understanding what a panic attack is.
Causes
Many different things can cause a panic attack to get started. These attacks can run in a family and be part of the heredity of individuals. Specific phobias or fears can also cause the panic attack to start and then the continued fear of these phobias may initiate continued attacks, even when the phobic item is not present. People with a passive style of communication tend to be more prone to panic attacks and individuals on certain types of medications. Additionally, the physical symptom of hyperventilation can itself lead to a panic attack.
Early Signs
A feeling of having hot flashes and a quickening of the pulse are common early signs for a panic attacks. Individuals might also feel shortness of breath and dizziness, which leads to light-headedness and possibly hyperventilation. The physical symptoms of a panic attack can lead to heart palpitations and paresthesias, or tingling sensations. The initial symptoms of shortness of breath and chest pain will often bring individuals into the emergency room for fear they are having a heart attack.
Diagnosis
Individuals who have a discrete period of intense fear or discomfort and four of the physical symptoms described above, can be diagnosed with panic attacks per the DSM-IV. Although the diagnostic criteria in the DSM-IV list specific physical symptoms, it is possible that patients can have other physical symptoms, such as headaches, screaming or crying and also meet the diagnostic criteria.
Talk Therapy
After a panic attack has subsided the addition of talk therapy into a patient’s life may help with processing the cause of the panic attacks. Through skilled questioning and in depth therapeutic techniques, the therapist can help the patient identify early symptoms and coping skills to put to use at first sign of these symptoms. Individuals may initially start by seeing a therapist one or two times per week while they are first learning about their panic attacks and exploring coping skills, then therapy might be only once a month to maintain the learning and provide resources to the patient.
Medication Therapy
Many individuals will require medication in conjunction with talk therapy. Because panic attacks can be so debilitating to someone’s life, taking medication to help lessen or eliminate the attacks is often helpful. Some patients may receive ongoing medication, which they take daily, to help prevent panic attacks, while other patients might receive medication that they can take as needed if they feel a panic attack is setting in.
Panic attacks are a full body reaction to a stress or fear. As the body starts to react to this phobia, the thought process of the individual continues the panic attack out of fear of the unknown. Individuals who are able to attend therapy and have medication management can often lessen their panic attacks. Holistic approaches to managing panic attacks are also extremely effective, for some patients, and help them avoid the unknowns which come from using psychotropic medications. Understanding the early signs and causes of a panic attack is essential for patients who wish to learn the necessary skills to prevent future attacks.
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