Anxiety attack, also known as panic attack, can occur all of a sudden. The general sensation can be related with the instinctive feeling of running away from danger. An unexpected rush of adrenaline sends signals to the brain, which in turn activates that flight instinct. Like when you’re scared of a real and current threat, you sweat, shake, palpitate and feel nauseous. Every person has had this kind of experience, especially under dire circumstances. But unlike people experiencing the normal kind of fear, the feeling of being threatened does not let up. A person suffering from anxiety attacks is constantly on guard, and may shun attention from others in the hopes of not triggering another attack.
Some people remain immobilized by fear. But unlike the normal fearful reaction, the threat in this case may be completely imagined, or even non-existent. Many cases of anxiety attacks occur because of the threat of an impending anxiety attack, which complicates things further for the sufferer of this disorder.
What is an anxiety attack?
An anxiety attack is one of the glaring symptoms of chronic anxiety disorder. These attacks occur to so many people that numerous research works have been devoted to curing this health problem. Full-blown panic attacks happen no matter what the gender, although these are supposedly more common among women than men.
While the other types of anxiety disorder occur subtly that no one can tell or know when a person is suffering from it, a panic attack is like a red flag waving in the wind, telling everyone that the person has anxiety problems. The main thing that concerns sufferers and their loved ones is the fact that these attacks seem to be unprovoked, which means they could occur anywhere and at any time.
The person suffering from the anxiety attack becomes more afraid of going out and risking exposure to what could be the main trigger for the attack. He tends to stay where he feels safe, usually at home, where no apparent threat is around. This is a main problem because the person can’t get a job for the long term. He ends up worrying that his problem will interfere with his work, or he thinks he will only be a burden to other people.
There are theories that point to childhood anxiety disorders as the main root causes of adult panic attacks. Phobias that remained undiagnosed and untreated may persist all the way until they surface as anxiety problems during adulthood. The main characteristics of a typical panic attack include the development of irrational fears that translate directly to physical imbalances. Surging hormones are just a part of what could happen. Some people faint because they feel like they’re having a heart attack. Others lose consciousness because they cannot breathe properly.
In some cases, panic attacks are results of prolonged substance abuse. They may also occur as a part of generalized withdrawal from drug use. Paranoia, mental illness and depression are just some of the disorders that could arise if anxiety disorders are not treated as soon as possible.
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