Panic Attack Treatment Methods
Panic Attack Treatment Methods can be difficult to find out about because you have to wade through voluminous materials about symptoms, definitions and so on.
Assuming that you already know about panic attacks and are looking for a solution for yourself or someone dear to you, we will try to outline possible treatments. For information about panic attacks, causes, definitions etc. are available on other pages of this blog.
The treatments fall into several groups, namely:-
First aid remedies.
The first line of defence is first aid – by which we mean self-administered techniques which can stave off an impending attack.
If you feel the symptoms beginning, (pounding heart, sweating, heavy breathing) stop and concentrate on what is triggering them and try to remove yourself from the situation.
You should try to avoid overventilation by breathing slowly into your cupped hands or into a paper bag (but cupped hands are better because using a paper bag carries a risk of suffocation). This step is important because hyperventilation leads to various symptoms which include tightness of the chest, lightheadedness, feeling of being only semiconscious, feelings of being smothered, and palpitations or pounding of the heart . Breathing slowly and deliberately will lower the amount of oxygen in the blood which is what hyperventilation means. Which symptoms appear depend upon circumstances and the sufferer,
Try to find somewhere to relax, close your eyes, keep telling yourself the attack cannot hurt you and try to find an activity to divert your attention from your symptoms. Take a walk or turn on some relaxing music, even occupy yourself with some chores to help relieve feelings of panic.
Next, keep a diary.. This is not outlandish nonsense: by keeping a diary you will learn what circumstances lead up to a panic attack; it will serve to remind you that you survived your previous attacks and if you seek the help of others it will help them to treat you. Even people who do not normally keep a diary frequently do so for medical conditions, understanding that self knowledge is the first to recovery in many situations. The same ideas are exploited in cognitive behaviour therapy (see below).
Medical Screening
People who have had panic attacks can have a greater chance than normal of subsequently suffering from heart attacks and for some people panic attacks are related to other curable medical problems.
If you thought you were having heart attack during your panic and were nor examined at the time, then you ought to communicate your concerns to your doctor (by way of reassurance, heart attacks are not preceded by feelings of doom and in some people are followed by a feeling of relief, well-being and warmth).
Medical screening is also appropriate to confirm (or eliminate) such causes as drug withdrawal, use of Ritalin, use of antidepressants, ear infection (labyrinthitis) and so on. There is a good list on Wikipedia
Cognitive Behaviour therapy.
This is the so-called talking therapy and it can be approached on a self help basis or with professional clinical help. It combines two previous styles of therapy (“cognitive therapy” and “behaviour therapy”).
A trained therapist will have dozens of specific methods and techniques to use – and will help you find the ones that work well for you. Self help courses are based on treatments that usually work as obviously it is not always possible to discuss an individual approach. One particular panic attack treatment is available by computer in the United Kingdom from the Hational Health Service.
Whether self-help or professional CBT normally has three steps:-
Cognitive.
One learns new methods and processes to change old patterns of thought. To expect the worst will ensure the panics attacks will be repeated. One’s mind must be trained not to think negatively, not to dwell on old attitudes.
Behavioural
Here one tries to rehearse the real-life situations which bother us and lead to anxiety and panic. The behavioural part follows on from cognitive therapy, because it needs a strong basis of cognitive and emotional skills/strategies from which one construct a different way of reacting to real-life challenges.
Emotional
In this area, we seek calmness and peace because the more the brain is relaxed, the easier to learn and inwardly digest the therapy. These methods do not focus directly on decreasing anxiety – the idea is that as peace and calmness become stronger, they tend to “force” out the anxieties and fears.
A course of professional therapy is typically 12-16 hour long sessions with the therapist, sometimes involving medication.
In any case, understanding the symptoms of panic disorder, and seeking for help will be the first step to control the disorder.
Hypnosis.
Hypnosis – specifically Self Hypnosis is also used for treating panic attacks, by removing the ‘conditioning effect’ of panic. This effect is the most difficult to deal with because it happens unconcsiously, one has little concious control over it, and it is reinforced by repetition (of the attacks).
Effectively one ‘re-educates’ the unconscious mind to understand that an everyday situation (as in a supermarket or on public transport) is not dangerous Hypnosis enables this re-learning at a deep level that it’s safe to get on with ones life without having to be on constant high alert.
Hypnosis of this kind is avalaible in short courses, from the internet, carried on CD and played back interactively from one’s computer.
You may find the following links useful:-
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