Learn How to Recognize an Anxiety Attack

An anxiety attack rises out of nowhere with no obvious cause. It is normal to be anxious in stressful situations or to worry about everyday events, such as children, work and finances. However, anxiety attacks are very intense and you feel extreme panic or fear over normal everyday things. Even when the attacks come right out of the blue, there is a trigger that brings them on.

An anxiety attack does not last very long. It usually reaches its peak in about ten minutes and rarely lasts longer than thirty minutes. However, in that short period of time, the discomfort is so strong that you may feel as if you are having a heart attack and are going to die if you don\'t get medical help immediately. Then when this attack is over, you may feel extreme fear that you will have another just like it and that there is something wrong with you that is bringing on these attacks.

In order to be able to control the frequency and intensity of extreme attacks of anxiety, it is important for you to learn to recognize the symptoms. The following is a general summary of common symptoms and not every person experiences all of them. Some people may experience more intense symptoms than others. These symptoms are:

· a surge of overwhelming panic that is so strong you feel as if you have to escape from the situation in some way immediately

· a fear that you are losing your mind and you have no control over your life

· chest pain and heart palpitations, which is what leads people to believe that this is a heart attack

· a feeling of lightheadedness and dizziness

· difficulty in being able to breathe and a feeling that you are going to choke

· hyperventilating

· hot flashes, causing you to become extremely warm

· chills that make you feel really cold

· trembling or shaking

· a feeling of nausea and you think you may have to throw up

· pains in the stomach very similar to cramps

An anxiety attack is often called a panic attack because of the intense feelings of panic. Sometimes such an attack can occur when you feel completely relaxed, but more often it comes on when you are thinking about something that causes you stress. You may also experience an attack when you are in the middle of a situation, such as being in a high place and suddenly becoming afraid of heights or getting the feeling that you will fall.

Some people only have one panic attack in their lifetime, while others have repeated attacks. Even having two or three is nothing to become concerned about. However, if you experience such attacks frequently, then you should seek medical help because it is possible that you have an anxiety disorder. This is especially true if you avoid situations you think may bring on an attack or if you are constantly worried that you may have one.

Learning to recognize the triggers of the attacks is important. When you do this you can talk yourself out of one by analyzing the situation and realizing that it is not as fearful as you think. You will probably need help from trained professionals if you are unable to do this on your own.

An anxiety attack is often called a panic attack because of the intense feelings of panic. Sometimes such an attack can occur when you feel completely relaxed, but more often it comes on when you are thinking about something that causes you stress.