subject: Learning To Cope With Panic And Anxiety [print this page] Coping with Panic Attacks is not easyCoping with Panic Attacks is not easy. They are some of the most life- changing and damaging events in a person will ever face. And people that have to live with this disorder will spend countless hours trying to find the right combination of doctors and medicine to help them cope with this very difficult problem that they face.
Stress and anxiety are things we all must face, at least to a certain degree, but a panic attack is a great deal of fear in a situation that most people don't consider unusually bad. Some sufferers are able to identify the things that bring on the anxiety, or triggers, and others are not.
Most of us will agree that public speaking is very stressful and can understand why people might "panic" in this situation. However, panic attacks victims can have these feeling in a car in heavy traffic or just walking into a store.
Anti-anxiety medications have become a very large business. And while they are helping, along with life style changes, to reduce the frequency and severity of the panic attacks, they only do so much. And some sufferers don't get the help they need but get some unwanted side effects that come with these types of drugs.
It seems panic attacks can almost bring themselves on. People that are prone to having panic attacks will find themselves in a situation that brings them stress or anxiety and the thought of a possible attack will in fact bring on the attack. It is like a snowball effect where the thought of anxiety brings on more anxiety and that extra stress brings on more, and so on and so on, until a full blow panic attack takes over.
Because of this, a person that has had panic attacks in the past is much more likely to have them again. This type of panic attack is sometimes prevented by the person themselves by recognizing the onset and getting away from the stress or through different types of relaxation of the mind. This is of course not the case with a large part of people with attacks. There is simply no way for them to help themselves out of the anxiety.
Unfortunately, you or a loved one already knows more than most doctors will ever know about what life is like with this weight on your shoulders.
