Panic Disorder Symptoms

Alone? Confused? Scared?

Your heart starts to pound. . .You begin to feel dizzy or faint. . .You experience shortness of breath. . .You feel tingling or numbness in your hands and feet. . .You start to feel pressure in your chest. . .You think you may be dying or at the least having a heart attack. . .You think you may be going crazy. . .But you’re NOT! 

Those are the classic symptoms of a Panic Attack. 

Symptoms of Panic or Anxiety include:

• Nervousness and jumpy
• Trouble sleeping – often has insomnia
• Trouble focusing thoughts
• May develop compulsive habits to keep order
• Tremors (in some cases)
• Can exhibit some destructive behavior (almost a mania in some cases)
• Excessive worrying that is not logical  

Millions of people across the world suffer from these symptoms of a panic attack every single day. You may be one of them. Or you may know someone that is battling with this affliction. 

Many people think they might be INSANE, or that they must have an isolated case of some weird disease, that, of course, they could NEVER reveal to another living soul. Otherwise they will end up LOCKED UP in a mental health facility! 

You may have a panic disorder if you have frequent or chronic panic attacks. This is a serious condition which is life threatening and should be treated as quickly as possible.

More Symptoms of a Panic Attack

Imagine being stood in front of a high speed locomotive and you are frozen solid to the spot. Unable to move, knowing what is about to happen, and can do NOTHING to help yourself escape. 

Now imagine being plunged into this scenario several times A DAY. 

This is what it feels like for an Anxiety Disorder sufferer. Or as close as it can be described. The only difference is, there is no speeding train barreling towards you. It’s unseen. And comes from out of no where. Without warning. Crippling you in utter fear. 

Sound intense? It IS. 

The ‘official’ ‘unofficial’ description of Anxiety is a disorder in which the individual afflicted feels an intense, irrational fear and an impending sense of doom or dread. 

What this means is that, in ‘layman’s terms’, if you suffer from Anxiety Disorder, or any form of it, that you will be confronted with paralyzing fear for no apparent reason that will make you feel as if there is no possible way out of it. And you can experience this unprovoked fear at any time within the course of a day. 

In addition to suffering from Anxiety Disorder, an individual may also have other common disorders that go hand-in-hand with it such as Depression, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Agoraphobia, or any other number of Phobias that make it all the more important to seek treatment for. 

Who Suffers From Panic Attacks?

People who you would never suspect in a million years! In fact, panic attacks are such a widespread disorder that virtually ANYONE can suffer from it. Your Uncle Buddy, your Grandma Jean, your sister Annie, your neighbor Joe, your best friend Patti, or your brother George. 

But, because Panic is one of those ‘sweep it under the carpet’, “embarrassment-type-I-think-I-might-be-going-crazy” disorders, people don’t like to talk about it. Or admit they are long time sufferers. 

Especially if you are someone always in the public eye, such as Kim Basinger. Kim had a long, difficult struggle with Panic disorder, and kept it a secret for quite a good portion of her life. You would never guess it to see her up on the ‘silver screen’ though would you? But she in fact has spoken out publicly about her battle with Panic in the hopes that this may raise awareness of this dreaded disorder. And it has. She is one brave soul to expose a huge portion of her private life like this. Good on you Kim! 

Let us not forget also that Panic is believed to be an inherited disorder, although your mom or pop may not show the outward symptoms of it. Remember, this is an embarrassment disorder, or one that makes the sufferer believe they are, or are going, crazy. However, not every person who has experienced a panic attack will develop a full blown disorder, but don’t discount the fact that potentially they COULD. 

Here’s an interesting statistical fact for you. According to NIMH(National Institute of Mental Health) approximately 40 MILLION adult Americans suffer from some form of Anxiety or Panic Disorder. And, it is twice as common in women as it is in men. 

What is panic or anxiety? Is it a disease or just a weakness to which certain individuals fall prey? Modern psychology feels that it is a disease that must be treated with medication and therapy. Those who are against modern psychology feel that this is a state of mind that can be overcome with strong will. Who is right?