Start a sense of heart attack, shortness of breath, heart beating a mile a minute, and sweat soaked clothes. Within seconds, comes a series of symptoms such as dry mouth, tremors, tachycardia, shortness of breath, upset stomach, chest tightness, flushing and dizziness. Such are the feelings of those who suffer panic attacks, a syndrome also known as panic disorder. The disturbance is one of the manifestations of pathological anxiety, and a major limitation of the patient’s life. The symptoms of panic disorder are very intense, than what could be considered the limit of normal anxiety, and experts estimate that is the manifestation of the highest possible degree of anxiety.
Panic attack-
Excessive anxiety
Anxiety is a normal emotional state, in fact, one of the characteristics that have ensured the survival of the human species is the ability to anticipate the danger. But anxiety is beginning to be pathological when no longer useful and becomes cause excessive suffering or harm the performance of the individual. Anxiety disorder is a manifestation of pathological anxiety.
What characterizes the sudden panic is the way in which the symptoms appear, and the fact that they can reach their peak at a maximum of ten minutes. Who suffers from this disease live in constant fright, not knowing whether the crisis will be repeated in minutes, hours, days or months, which will generate more unrest. Often crises are accompanied by the sensation of something tragic, like the sudden death or impending madness, which generate such uncertainty that the quality of life of patients is seriously compromised.
How to diagnose
The more accurate the diagnosis, earlier initiation of treatment and the greater the chances of reversal of the picture. It is very common for people who suffer from this problem passes through a marathon of specialists before being referred to a psychiatrist or psychologist. That has to do with the variety of physical symptoms commonly presented by the patient. Many times the patient does not immediately accept the diagnosis of panic syndrome, and does not believe that so many physical symptoms of emotional problems can arise.
The disorder is two to four times more common in women, but it can occur in men. The Panic Away higher frequency in women is related to hormonal alterations on certain brain structures. The most common is that the first episode of panic is given at the beginning of adulthood, but can occur in adolescents and preadolescents. It rarely shows over 65 years. It must be remembered, however, that a single episode of acute anxiety attack sets the condition of panic syndrome. Any of us could eventually have a crisis without the disease. The repetition of this crisis by setting the disease and deserves proper treatment.
Probable Causes
The reasons that create the disorder is not fully understood. Genetics may play a role, but also environmental influences, education and life circumstances. Triggers can vary from person to person, and include work or academic pressures, impending marriage or separation, birth of a child or loss of property or loved ones.
My experience tells me that a sum of three factors is sufficient to trigger the problem. Panic disorder fits into mutlifactorial origin disorders, ie, involving the participation of genetic factors, existential (especially when a person feels helpless) and the level of stress to which the person is subject.
The condition also appears in different ways, depending on how each person reacts to everyday conflicts. There are degrees mild, moderate and severe, according to the severity of symptoms. The three components of the box (panic attacks, anticipatory anxiety, avoidance behavior) must be taken into account when seeking to determine the severity of the case. Milder cases present clinically as panic attacks even with minimal symptoms or limited. The most serious attacks last longer, are more common, have a greater number of symptoms, which also increase in intensity. All these aspects should be considered carefully when looking for the best therapeutic approach.
How to treat?
As in most psychiatric disorders, medications and psychotherapy are used together, but do not rule the isolated use of one of them. If the person only has panic attacks without any other associated disturbance can benefit from a medication or some therapy techniques.
In the event that the table also include agoraphobia (phobia of open spaces) the response to medication is often limited. When the panic and phobia are present, combination therapy would be the best option.
Treatment should continue for at least six months, and ideally for a year. The improvements are immediate (occurring two to three weeks later), but biological changes take several months to disappear. Thus, if treatment is interrupted at the first signs of improvement, 80% of patients relapse within the first four to six weeks.
In regard to psychotherapy, there is no set time limits for treatment of panic attacks. It is important to establish, however, complicates the syndrome progressively when not controlled, almost no known cases of spontaneous cure. Among the most common complications of this disorder is untreated depression, the development of other anxiety disorders, abuse of alcohol and other sedatives, professional and social losses, and stress in family relationships.