Panic Attack: You are stronger than your fear
If you’ve ever experienced a panic attack you know how scary it can be. Sometimes there are obvious triggers, but sometimes they seem to come from nowhere at all. They can punch you in the chest, take your breath away, and leave you feeling exhausted and confused.
Some symptoms of a panic attack – some which can be mistaken for a serious medical condition – are listed below.
- Shortness of breath
- Heart palpitations
- Chest pain
- Feeling like you’re choking
- Dizziness
- Numbness
- Sweating
- Chills
- Hot flashes
- Depersonalization
- Fear of dying
A panic attack is caused when your adrenal gland decides it’s time to give you a nice dose of adrenaline. Adrenaline is extremely useful in intense situations – such as emergencies or combat – because it triggers our fight or flight response. It’s a blessing in these situations. It protects us. However, in non-emergency situations, it only causes intense fear and confusion. Your body is doing something completely natural. It’s just doing at an absolute inconvenient time.
Some of us only experience one or two panic attacks in our entire lifetime. For others, it’s a chronic problem diagnosed as Panic Disorder. When faced with panic attacks on a daily basis it’s not uncommon to develop depression.
You don’t always know when you’re going to experience a panic attack. In many instances, we end up trying to avoid anything associated with a previous episode. If you have a panic attack at a local restaurant it will make you less likely to want to visit it again because that place is now associated with that horrible feeling. If you have a panic attack while eating cereal you may avoid that brand of cereal for fear of it triggering another one.
Hyper-vigilance, anxiousness, and worry can become all-consuming when suffering from panic disorder. Enjoying daily life activities becomes more and more difficult due to constant fear and dread. There is a way you can get your life back. There is a way you can reconnect with yourself. It’s important to keep in mind no one has ever died from a panic attack.
It’s okay to ask for help. It doesn’t make you weak or silly and there is nothing to feel ashamed of. Through God all things are possible.
If you need a place to start please contact us. We are here for you.