How to Identify and Stop the Physical Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks
By: John Cielo
Submitted: 2010-06-02 07:09:26 | Word Count: 787
Here, you'll learn how to identify the physical symptoms of anxiety attacks and how to stop them naturally without drugs. Anxiety attack symptoms are horrifying, but once you know them for what they are, and what causes them, you'll be better placed to deal with them.
What Causes Anxiety Attacks?
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Anxiety attack, or panic attack, are the names given to the condition where a sufferer experiences a set of symptoms that appear suddenly from nowhere. These are extremely frightening symptoms that are actually the result of your body's natural, in-build protective response to a 'perceived' threat.
For example, many thousands of years ago, when a human was confronted with physical danger, the body reacted by triggering extremely rapid chemical changes to occur in the brain, that caused numerous physical changes in the body, in order to give the person as much chance to survive as possible.
Heart rate, blood flow, vision, hearing, muscles, etc. were all rapidly enhanced to allow humans to fight or run away to their maximum ability. This is called the body's flight or flight response.
How to Identify the Physical Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks
Now, in the present day you're highly unlikely to be faced with wild animals or other tribes trying to kill you, etc. So how come your body reacts in the way it does?
Remember, your body only needs to 'perceive' there is danger; it doesn't actually need to confirm it. Your body doesn't want to react too slowly, nor does it want to take a chance with your well-being, so it 'assumes' the worst case scenario, and triggers the response.
All this takes is for your anxiety levels to rise beyond a certain level. An anxiety or panic attack can occur in a person who already has higher than normal levels of anxiety or stress.
For example, if you're in a period of your life where you're under daily stress and / or suffering from general anxiety. All it takes is for you to be faced with an everyday stressful event, e.g. being stuck in rush hour traffic, for that additional spike of stress to add to your already high anxiety levels and push your anxiety 'over the top' thus triggering your body's response.
Your body is preparing you to fight or run away. But, because you aren't aware of any physical danger, the chemical and physical changes happening rapidly to you, manifest themselves in the symptoms of an anxiety attack.
Typical symptoms are tightness across chest or throat, racing heart, trembling, tingling extremities, nausea, rapid and shallow breathing, hot and cold flashes, a 'detached from reality' feeling, a feeling of imminent doom, etc. I can testify to just how terrifying these symptoms can be.
How to Stop the Physical Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks
(1) Remember that they cannot harm you. They are only your body's natural reaction to a threat that doesn't even exist! Bear this in mind at the onset of the symptoms.
(2) During an anxiety attack, your body's oxygen / carbon dioxide ratio is out of balance, partly due to your shallow, rapid breathing. Re-balance this by regaining controlled breathing. Breath slowly and rhythmically in through your nose and out through you mouth. Re-breathing into a paper bag can help too.
(3) Distraction is another technique that can help. You need to distract your mind from worrying about your symptoms as this only adds to your overall anxiety. Talk to your friend or partner, focus on an object and get as much information out of it as you can.
The Fear Factor Holding Your Recovery Back
There are many techniques for handling anxiety and anxiety attacks. But there is one critical issue that is often overlooked. And that is your in-built fear, since your last attack, of having another. And no wonder, anxiety attacks are so distressing. You can recognise this fear for what it is or, it can be in your subconscious.
But this fear adds to your already high anxiety and stress, so can push you over the edge once more into another anxiety attack. You need to break out of this cycle of anxiety / anxiety attack / fear / anxiety / anxiety attack, etc. in order to prevent anxiety attacks and eliminate your general anxiety.
Author Resource:-
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