What the hell is a PANIC ATTACK?

[mtgoat]

Are panic attacks common? And how the hell are you supposed to deal with them?

[mtgoat]

I checked out google... Looking for a little more personal reflection.

[mrw]

My ex mother in law got them. Sometimes mimicked a heart attack, other times she was afraid to leave the house. She went for help 1st to a shrink who gave her drugs which had many side effects. Finally hormonal therapy controled it. from what I understand, which admitedly is not a lot, they can be debilitating in the extreme

[mtgoat]

No shit, I am supposed to skiing in Austria right now. I went to get on the plane yesterday, and couldn't make myself get on. Racing heart, shaking. It makes no sense.

[acostiga]

i think i may have had a panic attack once, after a particularly traumatizing experience. afterwards, back at home as i was trying to sleep, the more i thought about what had happened the worse my physical symptoms became. maybe i set off the attack myself... the situation really developed it's own momentum, and i reached the point where i was shaking uncontrollably. i was exhausting myself with some really hysterical crying, and couldn't catch my breath. luckily, i called a friend and she kind of (in a way) talked me down from the situation. her just telling me to sit on the edge of my bed and take some deep breaths was a big step. i've never had anything like a panic attack happen to me since, nor had it ever happened previously. i think you're correct in describing it as terrifying.

yeah, anyhow, in my personal experience it's not a common thing. i get freaked out now and then, get upset or whatever like anybody else i suppose- but never with such strange physical symptoms. it was like being controlled by the panic, or whatever. having my friend patiently help me through the situation was clutch. i knew why i was freaking out, and i think that's how i got past the experience, but maybe you need to figure out for yourself what kept you from getting on that airplane. don't be afraid to talk about the situation with people who know you and care about you. their observations/insights might help you figure it all out. good luck.

[PNWbrit]

No shit, I am supposed to skiing in Austria right now. I went to get on the plane yesterday, and couldn't make myself get on. Racing heart, shaking. It makes no sense.

I can't believe you're admitting to this!

Is your trip blown out completely? That'd suck!

Have you ever had a problem flying before or is it just a phobia about Austrians?

[intheways]

Panic attacks fuckin' blow. I got all fucked up by them. I'm not sure why. I've read that head trauma is one cause. I just drank a lot of 151 and crushed my body any way I could to deal with it.

That sucks it happened on the way to a ski trip.

[YoEddy]

Smoke less pot ... or more. That should fix the problem.

Seriously though, I've read they can be caused by electrolite imbalance as well.

[mrw]

No shit, I am supposed to skiing in Austria right now. I went to get on the plane yesterday, and couldn't make myself get on. Racing heart, shaking. It makes no sense.

My own very logical wife will not fly at all commercially. I end up skiing without her if I'm going out west, BC and Europe.She passed on a killer job a few years back because she would have had to go to Calif. every qtr. Now what I find odd is that she will fly in a small plane if I'm piloting. She's not happy but she will go.
Getting back to your problem, I have talked to a lot of people in this post 9-11 enviroment who are flying scared or just passing on vacations involving airline travel. It sounds like you might have lost more than a few $$ so I hope you can get control of it. Is it the terrorist threat or the whole airplane thing that is bothering you?

[A-wreck]

No shit, I am supposed to skiing in Austria right now. I went to get on the plane yesterday, and couldn't make myself get on. Racing heart, shaking. It makes no sense.

The same thing happens to me. I get all fucked in the head whenever I have to leave Detroit. If I'm flying somewhere it's worse. If I'm flying across the country to go skiing, it's really bad. I go out of town every weekend to ski but, it's not so bad when I'm going to a familiar place, such as my friends cabin.

I surprised my girlfriend with a weekend trip to new orleans last year. She was pretty surprised when I was shaking and nearly crying getting into the car I had aranged to take us to the airport.

I must drink heavily during the last hours before a departure of any kind.

[mtgoat]

My old man recommened smoking out, but I am leaning toward getting drunk. In some screwed up way I think it may be related to leaving a comfort zone, going alone, or just stress/mental burnout, but who the hell knows. I know I don't have any fear of flying. I'll give it another go in a couple of weeks.

[Evil E]

a panic attack is when your body activates your fight or flight response. It can be very frightening and can seem incredibly real. Get yourself a good psychiatrist and some anti anxiety meds. Over time you will get a handle on them, but anxiety disorders are very very common in this country so dont think you are alone. I have not had any in a few years, but they used to be a frequent problem for me. If you are really freaked out you can PM me and Id be glad to tell you more & share my experiences with you.

One other thing
When youre having one try to relax yourself and calm down by deep belly breaths...
1 breathe in through the nose
2 expand your whole chest and stomach
3 and then exhale through your mouth.

just focus only on your breathing and nothing else

Good luck...

[intheways]

Get yourself a good psychiatrist and some anti anxiety meds.

In my personal experience this may help, although it only helped me initially.

One other thing
When youre having one try to relax yourself and calm down by deep belly breaths...
1 breathe in through the nose
2 expand your whole chest and stomach
3 and then exhale through your mouth.
One other thing
just focus only on your breathing and nothing else

Initially, this only served to fuck me up more. But after I got a handle on shit, it was really helpful. I went to the local hippy center for some meditation classes. It was cheesy, but helpful.

[ak_powder_monkey]

I checked out google... Looking for a little more personal reflection.

this dude looks like he lurked a while and is trying to Avoid being JONGed, have you avoided it thus far with your non JONGedness? (Fucking JONG) :P

[mrw]

My old man recommened smoking out, but I am leaning toward getting drunk. In some screwed up way I think it may be related to leaving a comfort zone, going alone, or just stress/mental burnout, but who the hell knows. I know I don't have any fear of flying. I'll give it another go in a couple of weeks.

DO NOT SELF MEDICATE!!! it only covers the problem, it will not cure it

[Plakespear]

I had a panic attack last week. Getting loaded onto a patrol sled, knowing you're fucked up, and having no health insurance is a good reason to panic, though.

[778skier]

I just finished a course in psychopathology, which including anxiety disorders and panic attacks. I've also experienced attacks twice. Most of the following is from my experience and a textbook. I'm not a professional.

There's three types of panic attacks.

Situationally bound: it will be triggered by one particular situation.

Unexpected: can happen at anytime, any place

Situationally Predisposed: it can be triggered by a specific situation, but wont happen everytime.

A panic attack involves experiencing atleast 4 of the following symptoms during a specific time period:
pounding heart or palpitations
sweating
trembling or shaking
shortness of breath
feeling of choking
chest pain
nausea
dizziness
feelings of unreality
fear of losing control
fear of dying
numbness or tingling sensations
chills or hot flashes.

Fortunately, most people that experience panic attacks experience it once or twice. Unfortunately, if it persists it can develop into a full disorder. From there some people develop agoraphobia because they're afraid the attacks will come when they're vulnerable. Either way, it's a good idea to figure out how to handle them when they occur. And some professional help may be worthwhile. I know from experience how unpleasant an attack can be. It's common enough that I'm willing to bet there's an anxiety disorder/panic clinic somehwere near your area.

Like Evil E said, a panic attack is simply your body tricking your brain into thinking it has to activate itself to fight or flee from danger. It can be caused by a number of factors. Including even simply excercise. From what i've read, psychological(non-drug) treatment involves exposure theraby and breathing re-training. Being aware of what's happening to you will be the first step to gaining control. After that, getting your heart-rate under control by relaxing and breathing deeply should help bring you down, so to speak. Anything you can do to reproduce the symptoms you experienced may help you get used to them and interpret them as they should be. Ex. holding your breath, tensing your muscles for 1 minute, spinning in a chair.

As it stands, I wouldnt be worried until it happens again, you're aware of it now and, it very well could have been a one time thing. If it happens again, get some counselling.

I hope that helps at all.

[fiddler]

My wife has panic attacks frequently, she can have a dozen of them while I'm driving us from Bellingham to Seattle. She does something called EMDR, don't know what that stands for. First, think past the situation causing the attack like seeing yourself arriving at your destination. Then clear your mind and wave your hand, fingers up, in front of your face and eyes for a minute. This will activate both sides of your brain which then for some reason breaks up the attack. My wife has had these attacks for years and this works for her.

I just went to ask her about meds and found out more info. First, panic and anxiety attacks are different. If you are worried about something specific it can bring on an anxiety attack. A panic attack will seemingly come out of nowhere. Ativan is an old drug commonly used to treat these. Xanax is newer and is now the most commonly rxed med. However watch for serious side affects. My wife had serious hallucinations and got REALLY weird on that stuff and stopped taking it. She uses valium if she needs meds for it now.
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy. Google EMDR and you'll find out more about it. She also doesn't do the whole EMDR therapy program but uses the hand eye movement part of it to break up individual attacks. She said it is important to remember (at onset of an attack) you aren't having a heart attack, breathe, it won't kill you and you will get through it.

Since someone who hasn't had these won't have a clue what you're going through ("I don't see any problem, everything is fine, get over it") educating partners about panic and anxiety disorders is important as well. You want to be supported not mocked for something that is real but invisible.

[f2f]

panic attacks are easy to cure -- relax, you're not dying; drink a little, smoke a little, ski a little. take yourself to your comfort zone, wherever that may be.

i had it once. being by myself in a really strange country, not knowing who i could call if shit hit the fan. a couple of beers fixed me good. i know people who know the symptoms and just say "fsck it, it's one of those again, i'm getting drunk"...

the more you pay attention, the deeper it gets you.

ps: oh yeah, and if you do die, at least you'll die happy

[ak_powder_monkey]

My own very logical wife will not fly at all commercially. I end up skiing without her if I'm going out west, BC and Europe.She passed on a killer job a few years back because she would have had to go to Calif. every qtr. Now what I find odd is that she will fly in a small plane if I'm piloting. She's not happy but she will go.

I'd rather fly a small plane rather then a commercial plane any day simply because if a small plane goes down you have a much better chance of surviving then a fatty 737

[mrw]

I'd rather fly a small plane rather then a commercial plane any day simply because if a small plane goes down you have a much better chance of surviving then a fatty 737

Very true. The two things that bring down small aircraft most often are
(1) fuel exhaustion
(2) continued flight into deteriorating weather

avoid those two and it's damn near as safe as walking

Of course where you come from, pilots are used to cutting things right to the edge. Ak probably has the best small plane pilots in the world.

[watersnowdirt]

panic attacks are easy to cure -- relax, you're not dying; drink a little, smoke a little, ski a little. take yourself to your comfort zone, wherever that may be.

not true. panic attacks/anxiety attacks are not easy to cure, and it is not about telling yourself to relax. If you believe this, you have not had a true anxiety attack.

These attacks are not the equivalent of being nervous or uncomfortable. It's the equivalent of feeling the same fear you might feel if you're about to be attacked by a bear, but feeling it on an airplane, or in the line at the supermarket. In other words, you're brain is reacting with irrational fear in a rational situation.


I get them as does my mom. My mom struggled with it far longer than I did, since we know so much more about how to handle them - I was able to get them under control much more quickly.

If you want to chat more, just PM me. I won't go into the whole history and how to deal with them here - it's far too long. But I've managed to deal with some pretty tough anxiety attacks that were interfering with my work and life. Just drop me a line anytime.

And for those suggesting to drink or smoke - that will only make it worse. It may be a quick fix, but if you're truly having anxiety or panic disorder, this is bad advice.

[A-wreck]

FYI: I don't get panic attacks when I work out more. This is the case with a friend of mine too.

Thoughts?

[EPSkis]

I had ONE attack ONE time - and it was one time too many.

Because it was an isolated incident, I didn't bother to see a Doc afterwards, but I think what brought it on was an inordinate amount of stress. Had just sold my house, was in the process of buying another, living in gf's parent's basement, worrying about $$, kids, etc,etc.

Guess it all just became a bit too much. Was sitting at my comp.,just mulling things around in my mind & all of a sudden felt flushed. Started sweating, mouth dry & felt like I had to stand up & move around. When I did stand up, I got so dizzy I almost fell over a couple times. Chest was heaving, breathing was highly erratic, had a hard time focusing on *anything*.

Thought that I was having either a heart attack or a panic attack & then convinced myself that it had to be a heart attack because I'm too "normal" to be having a panic attack - WRONG. (Of course, once you've convinced yourself you're going to drop dead any second, it generally doesn't make the anxiety any easier.)

After a few minutes of sitting on the bed & reassuring myself I was ok, things started to mellow out & within a half hour or so I felt fine.

Don't *ever* want to feel that again.

[freshie247]

Everyone has experienced something like this before.Physical activity helps balance out the mind through natural chemical balance.Without physical activity,I feel very unbalanced.Working out kept me from drug abuse after getting my heart stopped last year.