subject: Conquering you Panic Attack [print this page] Conquering you Panic Attack Conquering you Panic Attack
Every panic attack is a disturbing experience, but your first can be absolutely terrifying! For the most part the symptoms appear without warning and the palpitations, sweating, nausea and associated pain lead many people to believe they are suffering a heart attack. The tension these feelings invoke can lead to hyperventalation and the sensation that you cannot breathe and are suffocating,
When you experience a panic attack it is likely to make you feel out of control and dependent. You feel that you are the victim of your own bodily reactions and outside circumstances over which you have no control. The first step along the road to recovery is recognising that you have the power to restrain your symptoms.
Take control
Start by really looking, in detail, at your panic attacks. When did they happen? Where were you? What were you thinking? See if you can identify particular thoughts that trigger a panic reaction.
A number of experts have emphasised the need to accept the panic attacks when they occur and that it may in fact be most helpful if you try and ride out the attacks to learn that no harm will come to you. This may sound strange, but fighting them only increases your level of fear and allows your panic to take on tremendous proportions. Accept that a panic attack is unpleasant and embarrassing, but that it isn't life-threatening or the end of the world. By going with the panic, you are reducing its power to terrify you.
Creative visualisation and affirmations
Creative visualisation and affirmations are techniques that may be helpful. You can use them to re-train your imagination and to get yourself moving in a more positive direction.
Many people who suffer panic attacks have a vivid imagination, which they use to conjure up disaster, illness and death. You can train your imagination to focus on situations that give you a sense of wellbeing. You can imagine you are in a place that symbolises peace and relaxation for you, such as drifting on a lake. You can practise this anywhere but, until you have got used to doing this, try sitting in a chair with your limbs as floppy as possible, and think of calming images.
You can use visualisation to focus on situations that you fear. Imagine the situation and speak positively to yourself: 'I am doing well', 'This is easy'. These simple, positive, present-tense affirmations are messages that you can say silently or out loud.
These techniques do not provide a quick fix. If you have been used to thinking negatively, over a long period of time, you will need to practise every day. You may then gradually notice positive changes in the way you think of yourself and others.
Assertiveness
You may be having panic attacks because there are aspects of your life that are undermining your confidence. It may be useful to look at your family life, your job, and so on, and identify changes you would like to make. If you feel trapped in a situation, and find it very difficult to express your true feelings (to say 'no' or to set proper limits in relationships, for example), you may find assertiveness training helpful.
Learn a relaxation technique
If you habitually clench your jaw, and your shoulders are tensed up, this will generate further stress. Relaxation techniques focus on easing muscle tension and slowing down your breathing. It helps your mind to relax.
Breathing
Hyperventilation (over-breathing) commonly leads to panic attacks. Many people get into the habit of breathing shallowly, from the upper chest, rather than more slowly from the abdomen. Put one hand on your upper chest and the other on your stomach. Notice which hand moves as you breathe. The hand on your chest should hardly move, if you are breathing correctly from the diaphragm, but the hand on your stomach should rise and fall. Practise this breathing, slowly and calmly, every day.
Diet
Unstable blood sugar levels can contribute to symptoms of panic. Eat regularly and avoid sugary foods and drinks, white flour and junk food. Instead, choose complex carbohydrates, such as potatoes, rice and pasta. Caffeine, alcohol and smoking all contribute to panic attacks and are best avoided.
First aid
If you are having a panic attack, try cupping your hands over your nose and mouth, or holding a paper bag (not plastic!) and breathing into it, for about 10 minutes. This should raise the level of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream and relieve symptoms.
Other first-aid tips include running on the spot during a panic attack. If you feel unreal, carry an object, such as the photograph of a loved one, to anchor you in reality, or finger a heavily textured object, such as a strip of sandpaper. You could also distract yourself, by trying to focus on what is going on around you.
Which therapies are effective?
Drug therapy
Drugs are effective in treating the symptoms of a panic attack. Antidepressants dull the senses and slow down the brain functions making the symptoms of an attack less threatening. Drugs taken in isolation will not eliminate the root causes of panic attacks. Drugs should be used under strict medical supervision to help manage the symptoms in conjunction with additional therapy to identify and eradicate the root cause.
Antidepressants, especially SSRIs, are difficult to come off for many people, so when you are ready to stop taking them, you should always withdraw slowly.
When starting antidepressants, the side effects may include anxious, jittery feelings. The longer you are on them, the more likely you are to experience withdrawal symptoms, which can include panic attacks.
Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy is extremely successful in treating sufferers of panic disorder. The hypnosis (hypno) element helps the sufferer quickly experience a deep level of relaxation. While in this relaxes state, the subconscious is accessed and through the therapy element of hypnotherapy the original reasons for the disorder can be unearthed. This normally occurs when young (between the ages of 1 - 6 years old) and develops into a full blown fear of a particular situation. By revisiting the original memory and interpreting it as an adult, the correct interpretation can be made, thus removing the irrational fear.
Hypnotherapy is usually used in conjunction with other treatments such as CBT, breathing and relaxation exercises.
Generally this treatment is given in a face to face session usually at the therapist's clinic or sometime at the family home. The problem is that panic attacks do not fit around a session of therapy and if a sufferer is experiencing an attack it is often difficult for that person to physically visit the therapist's clinic (especially if one of the symptoms of an attack is agoraphobia). The development of Hypnostyx Conquer Panic Attacks' offers a solution as it enables a sufferer to enjoy a complete therapeutic session wherever and whenever they need to do so.
Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT)
Our thoughts have a very powerful impact on our behaviour. You may be unaware of seemingly automatic thoughts and misinterpretations that provoke attacks. This is because thoughts happen so quickly and may take the form of images and sensations, rather than words.
The way we interpret things can cause extreme distress. But it is possible to bring about a state of wellbeing by changing habitual thought patterns. If we think that our racing heart is a sign of a possible heart attack we'll be very frightened, but if we think that it is due to excitement or too much coffee, we'll feel very differently about it.
CBT aims to identify and change the negative thought patterns and misinterpretations that are feeding your panic attacks.
Behaviour therapy
Many people develop a pattern of avoiding situations that have previously provoked a panic attack. They may become withdrawn and phobic. A clinical psychologist can address the problem using behavioural therapy. The therapy concentrates on encouraging you to imagine anxiety-provoking situations, at the same time as practising relaxation. You will be encouraged to confront your fears, in fantasy, and then move on to facing your fears in reality. In learning to relax and face up to feared situations, you will unlearn your feelings of panic.
Complementary and alternative therapies
Complementary and alternative therapies can be helpful when people are experiencing stress-related symptoms, anxiety and depression. They can be a useful tool in promoting relaxation and inducing a state of wellbeing.
Complementary health practitioners stress the connections between mind and body, and aren't concerned with merely treating symptoms. There is an enormous number of different therapies: acupuncture, aromatherapy, autogenic training and homeopathy, to name but a few.
