Anxiety and panic attacks

Anxiety and panic attacks

Anxiety and fear are normal reactions in everyday life to a dangerous or stressful situation. However, they are not adequate in situations, where anxiety manifests by high intensity and regularity, as evidence of mental disorder or physical illness.

Anxiety is classified:

• Paroxysmal anxiety (agoraphobia, social phobia, isolated phobias, panic)
• Chronic anxiety (generalized anxiety disorder, anxiety, depression),
• Anxiety as adjustment disorders, manifestation of obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, somatoform disorder,
• Anxiety as manifestation of other mental illnesses (psychotic disorder),
• Secondary anxiety as one of manifestations of a somatic disease (hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism pheochromocytoma, cardiac arrhythmia, supraventricular cardiac disorders, etc.)
• Psychoactive substance-induced anxiety (amphetamine, cocaine, caffeine withdrawal syndrome after cannabinoid, alcohol, barbiturates use).

In contrast, panic attacks often tend to be short term, spontaneous and intense disturbance, which over time can grow into unpredictable, recurrent and severe anxiety attacks without any precipitating causes and develop rapidly from several minutes up to half an hour.

Panic attacks origin may be based not only on spontaneous impressions; it can also be attributed to the impact of specific life situations on emotional stability. The experience of others and appeasement does not help during panic attacks; therefore, it is essential to get a psychiatrist or psychotherapist counseling to deal with the situation, which influence the appearance of a panic attack outbreaks.

The most common symptoms of panic attacks are:

• Palpitations
• Chest pain
• Wheezing
• Heaviness in the stomach
• Dizziness
• Feeling of unreality, or fear of personal disaster (loss of control, loss of mind, a heart attack or sudden death).

VIVENDI expert advice for relaxation in cases of anxiety and panic attacks: