Panic attack, which can also be defined as a fear attack, is a psychological condition that causes the person to feel himself/herself in a dangerous situation, react with excitement and feel fear even though there is no real danger.
What is Panic Attack?
Panic attack, which can also be defined as a panic attack, causes the person to feel in a dangerous situation, react with excitement and feel fear even though there is no real danger. It is a psychological condition. This situation, which occurs suddenly and recurs from time to time, causes the person to find himself in a state of distress or terror.
These bouts of fear, the level of which is increasing, lasts for about 10 minutes. reaches its highest level. Average 5 to 30 minutes. The panic attack that lasts will go away on its own after this period. In the presence of a panic attack that causes severe physical symptoms, the person feels extremely anxious and fearful. In the presence of this disorder, which often causes symptoms such as heart palpitations, difficulty in breathing, and pressure on the chest, the person experiences intense fear of death. Although it is considered normal for many people to experience a panic attack once or twice in their lifetime, recurrent panic attacks and the inability to stop thinking that they will experience this experience again are defined as panic disorder.
Although the panic attack is not actually a threat, the person is in danger or in a difficult situation. It can be defined as the state of feeling anxious and fearful depending on what one thinks of it. Even if there is no danger, the person's body reacts as if he is in real danger. This disorder, which is thought to be found in about 3 out of every 100 people in the society, causes the sympathetic system to come into play and the "flight or fight" response.
This situation, which causes physical changes such as rapid heart rate, palpitations, shortness of breath, nausea and dizziness, makes the person think that he is facing a very serious health problem such as a heart attack and is about to die. Panic attacks, which usually occur during periods of intense stress, can occur even when there is no problem. Even if the person calms down and returns to his old self after experiencing a panic attack, he He cannot get over the negative impact of his experience at the moment.
He constantly thinks or expects that the fearful moment and the bodily reactions he experiences at that moment will be repeated. Panic disorder is mentioned in this situation, which can also be defined as the fear of having a panic attack.
How Does a Panic Attack Occur?
Panic attacks, which make the person feel in the middle of danger when there is no dangerous situation, affect the quality of life. It is a very debilitating psychological disorder. Normally, the feeling of fear allows the person to continue his life safely. This feeling, which occurs when the person is faced with a really dangerous situation, enables the sympathetic system in the body to activate, allowing the person to escape or fight the danger.
With the activation of the sympathetic system, the person's breathing accelerates. In addition to this situation, which makes you feel as if you are short of breath, the heartbeat accelerates. It causes one's own heartbeat to be felt. It causes feelings such as a quickening of the heart rate, hot flashes, sweating or shivering, which causes blood pressure to rise and more blood to be pumped throughout the body. All these reasons, caused by the sympathetic system to "escape from danger", cause less blood to be pumped to the skin and digestive system organs that do not need it at that moment, causing the person to show symptoms such as numbness, tingling, nausea or vomiting.
With the change in the amount of blood and therefore oxygen in the brain, the person may feel strange and about to lose control. This abrupt onset lasts for 5 to 30 minutes. However, what happens during this process affects the person a lot.
What are the Symptoms of Panic Attacks?
The biggest feature of a panic attack is that it cannot be predicted when it will start and when it will end. The sudden onset of fear and panic usually peaks within the first 10 minutes and ends in an average of 15 minutes. The common symptoms of panic attack, which is more common in women than men, can be listed as follows:
- Feeling of pressure in the chest,
- Acceleration of the pulse,
- Heart palpitations,
- Shortness of breath,
- Choking sensation,
- Dry mouth,
- Sweating,
- Shaking,
- Hot flashes,
- Feeling of numbness in the limbs,
- Tingling,
- Nausea,
- Vomiting,
- Dizziness,
- Headache,
- Feeling of fainting,
- Feeling of losing control,
- Feeling of having a heart attack,
- Feeling of losing my mind or going crazy
- Fear of death.
What Causes Panic Attacks?
Panic attacks often develop for no apparent reason. However, various factors play a role in the formation of attacks. Genetic factors, high stress level, recent or childhood traumatic events, susceptibility to negative emotions, drug use, smoking and caffeine use are among the factors that increase the risk of panic attacks. In addition to all these, psychological disorders such as obsessive compulsive personality disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, agoraphobia may also play a role in the formation of panic attacks.
How to Control Panic Attack?
Panic Attack, Although it can cause anxiety and fear, it is extremely important for the person to realize whether they are really in danger in the presence of these symptoms. Without worrying, it is necessary to realize that these experiences and the differences in the body are caused by a panic attack. The acceleration of the pulse and respiration should be tried to be controlled. In this process, it may be beneficial for the person to focus on their breathing, breathe slowly through the nose and count to five, and then exhale slowly through the mouth.
If the environment is suitable, closing the eyes, reducing the stimulus effect, focusing on feeling the object touched by the hand or foot, can calm the person. Another thing that can be done during a panic attack is to regain body control. During this process, it may be beneficial to tighten and relax the body muscles, respectively. When a panic attack occurs once or twice during difficult times in life, this is considered normal and the person does not need to see a doctor.
However, if the panic attack recurs frequently and it negatively affects the life of the person, it is necessary to consult a physician for treatment.
How to Diagnose Panic Attack?
After the person applies to the physician with panic attack complaints, the physician should the frequency of the attacks, what was felt during the attack, what kind of negativities this situation caused in the person's life. he questions it. The presence of a family history of panic attacks is investigated. In some cases, other possible health problems may need to be ruled out. Doubts about a person's heart health are removed with tests such as EKG, ECO and exertion test. If the experience is psychological, the diagnosis is clarified and appropriate treatment is started.
How to Treat Panic Attacks?
Some medical drugs and psychotherapy techniques are used in the treatment of panic attacks. SSRI, SNRI, benzodiazepine type drugs can be prescribed individually for the treatment of the disorder. Even if the person feels good following the use of the drug, the use of the drug should be continued. Reducing the dose of drugs or completely abandoning their use should be done under the supervision of a physician. In the treatment of panic attacks, psychotherapy can be used together with medication in some cases and alone in others.
During the cognitive behavioral therapy method, topics such as what to do during a panic attack, how to deal with this situation and how to prevent panic attacks are discussed. Thanks to cognitive behavioral therapy, which is a very effective method in the treatment of panic attacks, the person can completely get rid of panic attacks.
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