The busy pace of life we lead can cause anxiety to grow within us without us even realizing it. For this reason, it is increasingly common to find in emergency department people who have suffered a panic attack or anxiety attack for no apparent reason.
Panic attacks carry physical symptoms that can make us think that we are having a heart attack since among them are palpitations, heart tremors or an increase in heart rate. But what is a panic attack?
Panic attack or anxiety crisis is defined as an experience of intense fear, which appears suddenly and is accompanied by physical symptoms, 4 of which must correspond to any of the following:
- Palpitations or increased heart rate Sweating Tremors or shaking Feeling of choking or shortness of breath Feeling of suffocation Chest tightness or discomfort Abdominal nausea or discomfort Feeling of unreality or being separated from oneself. Fear of losing control or going crazy. Fear of dying. Feeling numb and tingling. Chills or hot flashes.
People who suffer panic attacks very frequently develop anticipatory anxiety about the possibility of having new panic attacks. That is, they tend to develop “fear of fear”, which turns this experience into the “whiting that bites its tail”.
The fear of having another attack again, accompanied by the negative thoughts that this brings, such as the intense fear of having a heart attack, dying, losing control, or going crazy, make these sensations and feelings associate with specific situations in Those who have already experienced these intense fears, leading to behaviors of rejection or avoidance of these situations, which gradually interferes in the daily routine, modifying habits and behaviors.
It is also frequent to start to fear those situations in which escape would be difficult or embarrassing, such as being alone (outside or inside the house), going to crowded places, taking the elevator, driving… In this way, little by little avoidance behaviors are expanded to a wide range of situations, and what is called agoraphobia can begin
But what are the causes of a panic attack?
Although the causes of panic disorders are not known with certainty, there are several theories about it.
Initially, biological models attribute panic to a biochemical problem of the nervous system, for which there would be a genetic predisposition, although they have not developed enough empirical support, so alternative models have been developed.
Later, the psychophysiological models have indicated that these anxiety attacks are due to the interaction between triggering stimuli that cause physiological or cognitive changes (stress, physical effort, intense emotional responses…) and the perceptual and association processes of each subject. The combination of these factors would therefore be the cause of the anxiety reaction.
What to do when faced with a panic attack? Is there treatment?
Today, cognitive behavioral therapy is considered the treatment of choice in panic disorders, since improvements are seen in up to 80% of cases.
The treatment of panic attacks groups different psychological techniques such as relaxation training, cognitive restructuring or exposure to feared situations. While there are a few simple guidelines that can help you control a spot panic attack:
- Accept physiological sensations as something natural and temporary. They usually tend to remit after 20 minutes. During that time, practice relaxation exercises and abdominal breathing, which will help reduce pulsations and palpitations, among other symptoms. Try to distract your mind with something foreign to your physical reactions or negative thoughts. For example, count 7 by 7 or recite a song or poem, distract your body with a task such as picking up and tidying up the room, sorting and filing documents, ironing clothes etc.
Anxiety attacks are more common than we previously thought. However, if you notice that the frequency of your anxiety attacks increases, consult a specialist since it can degenerate into an anxiety disorder.
