It overtakes you suddenly, when your heart is pounding and you feel dizzy or maybe unable to catch your breath. These symptoms and their similarity to a heart attack are precisely the reason why panic disorder is sometimes difficult to diagnose. But for the six million adults affected by panic disorder, diagnosis and treatment is critical to improving quality of life. The Anxiety and Depression Association of America describes the panic attacks suffered by those with the disorder as “seemingly out of the blue” and sometimes occurring even during sleep. Some people may have only one panic attack in their lifetime, but if you have endured multiple panic attacks, you know just how debilitating they can be. LifeLens Psychological and Counseling Services specializes in treating panic disorders.
Symptoms of a Panic Attack
It happens relatively quickly, peaking often within 10 minutes, but for that period of time, the physical sensations and their accompanying fears can make it feel frighteningly longer. Most who suffer from a panic attack suffer several of these symptoms at once:
- Accelerated heart rate
- Chest pain
- Nausea
- Sweating or chills
- Feeling short of breath or choking
- Lightheaded or feeling faint
- Feeling disconnected from reality
- Worry about losing control
- Fear of dying
Improving quality of life isn’t the only reason to address panic disorders. For many people, once they have experienced a panic attack in a particular location or situation, they strive to avoid repeating those circumstances, sometimes leading to Agoraphobia.
Treatment of Panic Disorder
Treating your panic disorder typically involves psychotherapy, medication or both. Learning new ways of thinking and different techniques for handling stressful situations is at the heart of Cognitive Behavior Therapy – the type of psychotherapy most frequently used.
It overtakes you suddenly, when your heart is pounding and you feel dizzy or maybe unable to catch your breath. These symptoms and their similarity to a heart attack are precisely the reason why a panic disorder is sometimes difficult to diagnose. But for the six million adults affected by panic disorder, diagnosis and treatment is critical to improving quality of life.
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America describes the panic attacks suffered by those with the disorder as “seemingly out of the blue” and sometimes occurring even during sleep. Some people may have only one panic attack in their lifetime, but if you have endured multiple panic attacks, you know just how debilitating they can be. LifeLens Psychological and Counseling Services specializes in treating panic disorders.
Working with you to identify an effective approach to therapy is what we do best at LifeLens.