What Was That?!
Symptoms of an Anxiety Attack

Anxiety or panic attacks occur as an overwhelming sensation of fear and apprehension. Its sudden onset is very alarming, and the attack itself generally lasts for approximately thirty minutes with an anxiety peak at ten minutes. However, it is not unusual for these episodes to be as short as fifteen seconds or be cyclical over a span of hours. Anxiety attacks are nevertheless quite abrupt.

Those who suffer from this ailment usually experience a feeling of extreme fear and may have an unnerving sensation of dying.

Others feel heart attack symptoms, flashing vision, nauseous, numbing throughout the body, exaggerated breathing (generally to the extent of hyperventilation), and an overall sense of losing control. Certain individuals may experience tunnel vision or an urgent need to evacuate a certain space.

These symptoms are a direct response from the sympathetic nervous system within the body. Commonplace incidents include symptoms of trembling, palpitations, pain in the chest, hot/cold flashes, burning around the facial or neck area, unnecessary sweating, dizziness (attributed to acute vertigo), light-headedness, choking sensations and tingling throughout the body.

Generally, an symptoms of an anxiety attack come in at least two's - you'll get a physical symptom, accompanied by a mental symptom (fear or worry). Many are so extreme that they rarely understand what is happening.

Many attacks are caused by long-term conditions that are hereditary, while others are mind-over-matter. For example, people suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or hypoglycemia, often experience an anxiety attack as an expression of their respective disorder. This is due to biological deficiencies that induce sporadic, yet intense, symptoms of an anxiety attack. Also, it is common for phobia sufferers to have these attacks when confronted with situations in which they have direct exposure to their phobia.

Other causes can be psychological in nature where significant personal loss in life or overall shifts in daily routine can cause monumental stress resulting in anxiety attacks.

Although the anxiety attack itself feels like the end of the world, it is actually the body protecting itself from damage. For example, the release of adrenaline induces the need to either flee or stay and fight (often referred to as the fight or flight response) and braces the body for the consequences of either decision. The heart rate increases causing heightened breathing, sweating and shortness of breath, which readies the body for intense physical activity.

Anxiety attacks generally occur as a reaction to something that non-anxious people would not normally react to. However, an anxiety attack feels like it’s the end of the world - all the physiological reactions are present with none of the external activity.

So your body is having this crazy flight-or-fight response to a danger that doesn’t really exist, which sends your mind into a tail-spin trying to find a cause for the panic, and you brain ends up creating something to fear to balance out your body’s reaction. This conflict creates a tumultuous physical and mental combustion resulting in an attack.

If you are experiencing an anxiety attack, it is very important to not work yourself up into a further frenzy. Remember, you are going to be just fine. Try focusing on your breathing (using a paper bag to breathe in and out of is often helpful) and slowing your breath. Taking control of your thinking during an anxiety attack is the first step to avoiding any attacks.

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