How can u tell if u've had an actual panic attack or a nervous breakdown?
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Hi! A panic attack is an over-reaction - it's an exaggeration of the natural flight/fight response. But the symptoms are very distinct (just as in a lot of phsycial conditions e.g. an athsma attack or heart attack). There is certainly no ambiguity with a panic attack - it's very intense. Of course, many people say, "I almost had a panic attack" when they don't mean it (just as they say "I almost died!).
For anyone suffering from panic attacks, the following steps will help:
1.Breathe properly - if you control your breathing, you control panic. As soon as you notice the signs of anxiety, check your breathing: breathe in slowly through your nose pushing your tummy out (to the count of 5 or so). Breathe out slowly and for a bit longer (to the count of 7 or so) through your mouth. Do not breathe rapidly or shallowly (in the chest area). This will soon restore the balance of oxygen and you will feel a lot better.
2. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy! CBT is proven to be the most effective thing for panic attacks, OCD and anxiety etc. It takes a bit of work, but it is super effective. (After 15 years of panic attacks, mine stopped completely). You can speak to your doctor about taking a course or you can take a course for free online at: www.livinglifetothefull.com
3. Try relaxation exercise tapes (progressive muscular relaxation). They really help if you practise often enough. You can get free downloads if you put "progressive muscle relaxation" into Google (e.g. lots of universities have them as free downloads)
With each step practise makes perfect. (i.e. practise the steps every day, not just when you are feeling bad).
A panic attack involves hyperventilation, and rapid heartbeat, due to the adrenaline surge of the "fight or flight" reaction involved. See panic attack treatments and links, at http://www.ezy-build.net.nz/~shaneris... on page 8.
Panic attacks are sudden feelings of terror that strike without warning. These episodes can occur at any time, even during sleep. A person experiencing a panic attack may believe that he or she is having a heart attack or that death is imminent. The fear and terror that a person experiences during a panic attack are not in proportion to the true situation and may be unrelated to what is happening around them. Most people with panic attacks experience several of the following symptoms:
“Racing” heart
Feeling weak, faint, or dizzy
Tingling or numbness in the hands and fingers
Sense of terror, of impending doom or death
Feeling sweaty or having chills
Chest pains
Breathing difficulties
Feeling a loss of control
Panic attacks are generally brief, lasting less than ten minutes, although some of the symptoms may persist for a longer time. People who have had one panic attack are at greater risk for having subsequent panic attacks than those who have never experienced a panic attack. When the attacks occur repeatedly, a person is considered to have a condition known as Panic Disorder.
People with panic disorder may be extremely anxious and fearful, since they are unable to predict when the next episode will occur. Panic Disorder is fairly common and affects about 2.4 million people in the U.S., or 1.7% of the adult population between the ages of 18 and 54. Women are twice as likely as men to develop the condition, and its symptoms usually begin in early adulthood.
It is not clear what causes Panic Disorder. In many people, its symptoms develop in association with major life changes (such as getting married, having a child, starting a first job, etc.) and major lifestyle stressors. There is also some evidence that suggests that the tendency to develop Panic Disorder may run in families. People who suffer from Panic Disorder are also more likely than others to suffer from depression, attempt suicide, or to abuse alcohol or drugs.
Luckily for sufferers of frequent panic attacks, Panic Disorder is a treatable condition. Psychotherapy and medications have both been used, either singly or in combination, for successful treatment of Panic Disorder. If medication is necessary, your doctor may prescribe anti-anxiety medications, antidepressants, or a class of heart medications known as beta blockers to help control the episodes in Panic Disorder.
nervous breakdown, officially a symptom of one of the psychiatric diagnoses listed above, includes some sort of disintegration of personality – usually temporary. It's as if the "circuits are overloaded." When associated with stress, it has been described as a "snapping under extreme pressure." (Interestingly, surveys show that one third of Americans have felt on the verge of a nervous breakdown at some point in their lives.)
A breakdown can manifest as an inability to function (to fulfill obligations at work or home or school). It may involve severe weakness, exhaustion or even catatonic posturing (inability to move). In breakdowns of the depressive type, there may be uncontrollable crying, loss of pleasure in all activities, dramatic weight loss or weight gain, sleep disruption or extreme sleepiness, confusion, disorientation, extreme feelings of worthlessness, guilt and despair.
In breakdowns involving psychosis, there will be a loss of contact with reality that can take many forms:
· having visions, hearing voices or feeling sensations that have no basis in fact (i.e. feeling like there is something crawling on the skin when there isn't; hearing someone say something when there is no one present)
· obsessing about doing something harmful (i.e. in post-partum psychosis, having thoughts of harming one's baby)
· feelings of being victimized or persecuted by others (when this isn't happening)
· feelings of extreme guilt or excessive grandiosity or unwarranted intense jealousy
· strange speech patterns (not comprehensible because it is strangely organized and presented)
· strange behaviours (bizarre behaviour such as odd body movements or disrobing in public)
In breakdowns that are actually bi-polar (manic) episodes, there may be racy behaviour, lack of sleep with high energy, very poor judgment resulting in excessive spending and socially inappropriate behaviours, increased talkativeness, and exaggerated self-esteem.
In breakdowns that are manifestations of some sort of anxiety disorder, there may be panic attacks and incapacitating fears that affect daytime performance (perhaps interfering with ability to work, study or run a home) and disrupting night time sleep patterns.
The common factor in all types of nervous breakdowns is that the sufferer steps out of his/her normal, functional lifestyle and into a place of emotional chaos that erodes normal functioning.
Who Gets A Nervous Breakdown?
Some people have a nervous breakdown after exposure to extreme or unremitting overwhelming stress. They may have been "normal" beforehand. For example, a young man may come back from battle with a nervous breakdown (post-traumatic stress disorder), whereas he entered the battle "normal." Similarly, a woman may have functioned normally until she was violently assaulted. Or, a woman may have been perfectly normal until she gave birth, after which she experienced some type of post-partum depression. Theoretically, anybody could have a nervous breakdown.
Some people have breakdowns that were "waiting to happen." These are disintegrations that result from genetically based disorders such as schizophrenia or bi-polar depression. The genetic sensitivity, combined with life stress, can result in a "breakdown." Breakdowns that are episodes of major depression also stem from a combination of inborn and environmental factors (for example, having a family history of depression and then experiencing serious loss, frustration or failure in one's own life).
How Are Nervous Breakdowns Treated?
Appropriate types of psychotropic medications, therapeutic interventions and rest are used to treat breakdowns. Normally people are restored to previous levels of functioning (or even better, depending on the type of breakdown); in some cases of mental illness, healthy functioning is never completely restored. In the vast majority of breakdowns, however, proper treatment leads to recovery and prevention of further collapse.
For example, an episode of major depression ("a nervous breakdown"), can bring a person to psychotherapy for the first time. Psychotherapy (which may or may not require the addition of medication, depending on the severity of symptoms), can help the person come "back to himself" and it can also help him learn powerful ways of monitoring stress levels in the future, so as to prevent further breakdowns. In addition, psychotherapy may help him to achieve a higher level of functioning (mentally, emotionally and spiritually) than he ever had before. In other words, a nervous breakdown can actually be a gift! Indeed, many people have experienced a breakdown as a pivotal turning point in their lives, a situation that forced them to take stock, dismantle harmful mental, physical and emotional habits and revamp their lifestyles. Like many crises, the nervous breakdown can be an opportunity for growth. Nonetheless, most of us would prefer not to have one.
Preventing Nervous Breakdowns
In many cases, a total collapse can be prevented by responding promptly to early symptoms. Don't wait until you crack up – seek professional psychological help when feeling very stressed or when mood is dropping and not picking up quickly. Self-management can include taking a break from work, taking alternative remedies and treatments (see your naturopath, herbalist or homeopath); exercising more, allowing more time for sleep, increasing actual fun and laughter, doing some deep relaxation or meditation daily, improving food choices and de-stressing your lifestyle wherever possible. Take care of yourself! Not all breakdowns can be prevented, but many can. Increase your chance of staying physically and mentally healthy by being proactive in your approach.
A panic attack is when a person gets exmp. a person who doesn't like big crowds, say they go to a concert and suddenly they sort of freak out, they are probubly having a panic attack. The person feels overwhelmed, fear, sort of shaky sweaty may even go as far as breathing heavu=ily, depends on how bad they are overwhelmed. Some can control it a bit better than others. It isn't always when a person breaths into a brown bag, but it can go to that extreme. It is a disorder and If you feel someone is doing it for attention well that may be but if so, they are looking for attention, or suffering from something you don't understand, so be patient and just be helpful and takl open and honestly with the person and maybe you can get to understand the situation a bit better also. Some people take meds for it
You'll know it if you have a panic attack. I think a lot of people say they have panic attacks, when they really just get very upset or nervous about something (that's not to say they're not suffering, but I personally don't think it's the same thing).
Personally, my panic attacks were overwhelming bouts of anxiety. I was so anxious that I paced the halls, literally unable to sit still, crying and hyperventilating because it was so unbearable. I had 2 really bad panic attacks, and the only thing that got rid of them was ativan and going to sleep. They were the most unbearable minutes of my life.
Well, I've experienced panic attacks ...During panic attacks, I had rapid pulse, I couldn't talk, I felt like I was dying- but I wasn't dying. I felt hot. During a nervous breakdown is a different story.. your brain shuts down, your emotions aren't normal, and you'd end up in a hospital for quite some time.
Over reacting requires a cause. One can over react to many things, the list is endless.
Panic attack is normally an anxiety attack that debilitates one for a period of time causing one to question their abilities to function. There usually is no realistic cause. It causes fear of loosing one's mind.
Some panic attacks can be triggered by chemical exposures or an imbalance of the neuro transmitters in the brain.
Aspartic acid , aspartame, a sweetener contains two parts of neuro transmitters, which for some people can, and does cause panic attack. Phenylalanine and Aspartic Acid makeup the sweetener. Each is one part of a neurotransmitter. When added artificially through ingesting Aspartame, it can throw off the brain's natural balance . It also is suspect in other reactions, such as head aches, dizziness, and confusion.
Panic attack is like an anxiety attack, you know? Like Billie Joe has...(it's Alison I just put my own pic up and changed my name!)
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