Panic Attacks - Stop Scaring Yourself!
Most people are unaware of the magnitude of the disruption panic attacks bring to a patient suffering from them frequently. They do not understand what causes these attacks and why they are so terrible for the patient. Patients who undergo panic attacks are unable to leave home or work. They are unable to handle specific situations or to tolerate the presence of specific objects around them. This can have a terrible influence on their daily life and is very hard on them.
Panic Attacks typically start with fear, worry or anxiety. Normally everyone feels anxious some time or the other, but the patient with panic attacks experiences intense anxiety. Their emotions of anxiety, worry and fear get totally out of control. This fact causes them even more anxiety and gets converted into physical symptoms. They feel as if they are suffering from heart attack or some other critical medical problem like seizure. Physical symptoms represent a big indication in understanding panic attacks. Patients who suffer from a high state of fear, anxiety or worry feel their increased heartbeats, palpitations and a feeling of tightness in the chest. This worries them all the more because they feel they are facing much more than a fearful situation. Some neurological symptoms like uncontrollable shaking, jittering or twitching may also be exhibited. The patient literally shakes from terror and fear over the confronting situation. Other symptoms such as headaches, diarrhea, stomach upset, chills or hot flushes, nausea and other physical reactions may also manifest.
What causes these panic attacks? The causes of panic attacks are varied and they are different for each individual. Chronic panic attacks may manifest as psychological disorders such as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety, Phobia and such other anxiety disorders. Persons suffering from these disorders display an astoundingly higher level of anxiety than persons who are lucky not to suffer from these disorders.
Panic attacks may also be a result of underlying medical disorders like Thyroid Disorder, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Migraines, some types of heart conditions and certain disorders which are anxiety provoking. Some of these will directly result in anxiety due to physiological reasons whereas others will cause anxiety as an outcome of the medical disorder. The patients with medical problems could be fearful of their deteriorating health or the medical problems may not allow them to undertake certain activities or reduce their capacity as compared to earlier times.
Panic attacks may also result from medications. Many medications have side effects which result in restlessness, insomnia, nervousness and deep anxiety. The people who are prone to anxiety normally find that medication worsens their situation and makes it more difficult to achieve control over their feelings. If the medication prevents them from sleeping, it aggravates symptoms.
If you understand what panic attacks are, it will help you to assist a close friend or a member of the family who may be undergoing panic attacks regularly. It is important to understand that these people are neither going mad nor are they inventing the symptoms that are displayed. Panic attacks are terrible disorders which totally disrupt someone’s life. If you can encourage such a person to seek medical help to reduce these panic attacks frequency and severity, you would have done a lot to support him towards leading a normal life.
Abhishek Agarwal
http://www.articlesbase.com/mental-health-articles/panic-attacks-stop-scaring-yourself-709370.html
4 Responses to “Panic Attacks - Stop Scaring Yourself!”
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November 28th, 2009 12:20 am
How can I stop my brother from “insulting” me or whatever you might call it? (WARNING: LONG QUESTION)?
Ignoring NEVER works, or else he would be an angel by now, or saying something that shows that I don’t care about his comments.
This is what he normally says, trying to make fun of me but doing a bad job (he does it in an annoying voice that he claims sounds exactly like me, his name is Eric by the way):
Oh my gosh, Eric, get away!
I don’t know what I’m doing and you do and you’re trying to help, but you are being annoying! (In reality he is just treating me like dumb dirt)
Quid maging fun of me! (He claims I talk like this and this is always how he talks, I even tryed saying he must love the way I talk to imitate it all the time for while, but it didn’t work)
Sarcastic remarks like (when I get mad and stomp or something when I am playing piano or bang on keys but not too hard):
Oh yes, because getting mad is totally going to help.
And if I say something wrong the first time I say it he will say "What? What is–" even if I try and correct it.
Last night I had my last of his remarks when I had to turn on a light in my room after dark (the room was dark) and I am so scared of the dark that I will have a panic attack and cry if I have to be alone in the dark. I tried to go but I ran to him and said
Me: Will you please turn on the light for me?
Him: Do it yourself.
Me: I’m scared.
Him: "I’m scared (in imitating voice)." Quit trying to act cute.
Me: I’m not TRYING TO ACT CUTE.
Him: That’s a first.
Me: FINE I’LL GO.
It made me so mad because I almost cried when I had to turn on the light and he is under the impression that everything I do isn’t because I want to, it is because my friends are doing it/I want to make a scene/I am trying to act cool/cute, but at least I have over five friends, he only has ONE! And he is almost 17.
Don’t tell me to ignore it, I do. And I am tired of it because all he cares about is playing his video games and playing on the computer and to him I am just a distraction from both and I should get out of his room, I can’t tell him anything without after finishing, him saying something like what I listed above, being screamed at to get out, or him imitating what I said like I am dumb. I have…rats (pets, they are different than wild trust me) and he hates them and they had to be moved to his room and we were supposed to trade rooms but he decided he loves his room too much to move. He is in there all day and when I take my rats out (on my shoulders, they are supposed to get an hour out of the cage a day on the floor but NO, he decides to threaten to release them into the wild if I put them on his floor) and talk to them, he says I should get out of his room and they are stupid and stuff (I learned to ignore it) and then starts making fun of me about how I love my rats.
So sorry for being long but is there any way to make him stop? I mean one time someone said "I love my brother do you love your brother?" and I said "Sort of," because that is how I think of him. She was shocked. I barely love him and I want to love him more but it is hard when I don’t feel I am welcome to go within 10 feet of him. I know everyone with brothers faces similar problems but they are making mad and I feel so guilty for not loving him as much as I should and the not loving him like I should is the only part that is making me actually cry!
I have a few things to let you know:
I barely ever get upset in front of him.
I don’t have much money to buy games, and he usually plays on the Wii, and those games are expensive…but I will get money soon!
He is sarcastic to me, not the other way around. I usually just take it seriously and act like it isn’t sarcasm to try and make it seem like I don’t care, but he still continues.
He’s older than me.
November 28th, 2009 5:22 am
My advice would be to let him do one more thing and just completely blow up on him. Just let him insult you one more time and just blow up on him and call him out. Throw stuff at him too and take your rats.
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November 28th, 2009 5:24 am
kick him in the balls. that will shut him up quick.
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November 28th, 2009 5:26 am
Since the beginning of time it has been every little brother’s job to annoy his sister in every possible way. I had a big brother and a little brother; they drove me nuts, too. You can’t ignore him, because he won’t allow you. (I know.) Telling on him isn’t very effective for very long. (I know.) But one day you’ll find out he loves you very much. (I know.) On that day you’ll be able to forgive him for being a stinking little brat and causing you so much irritation. Take it from me because I know.
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