- Causes of panic attacks
- Development panic attack and her symptoms
- How to get rid of panic attacks?
- As a conclusion
After a panic attack, a person feels confused and nervous. Most likely, he will avoid those places where he had a similar attack, but in general, such phenomena are not fatal and have little effect on physical health person. For the treatment of such a problem, the main thing is the desire to get rid of it, because. many people prefer not to dwell on it and do not seek help from doctors.
In this session, we will review the naturalistic impact exercises the client did, asking in detail about how they were performed, in order to identify the unintentional dependence of the defensive cues or behaviors mentioned above. In this context, this therapeutic technique refers to systematically, repeatedly subjecting oneself to real life agoraphobic situations. The authors analyze the possible advantages or disadvantages of some and other modalities in the light of empirical data, but they are not always clear, and the general conclusion is that it depends on each case.
According to statistics, about 1% of all residents of Russia periodically suffer from such a problem. In America, this figure exceeds 2.5%. Most often, people who periodically experience such phenomena have other problems. nervous system(eg depression, alcohol addiction, the need for medical preparations narcotic action, frequent stress, etc.).
The theoretical basis on which it is based is very similar to the theoretical concept of interoceptive influence: it is believed that with repeated and systematic exposure to dangerous situations one learns that catastrophic events are unlikely and that they are not catastrophic. However, the authors note that the disappearance of fear does not appear to be the only way the therapy produces its effects - as shown in that equal or better results are obtained when the subject is not subjected to intense fear, rather the patient. it is allowed to "run away" from the task when the anxiety reaches a certain level, as is the case in the "controlled exit" mode, as opposed to the "endurance" mode.
It is known that in men, panic attacks appear 5-7 times less often than in women. Most often they appear between the ages of 23 and 48, as well as in old age. By the way, people living in major cities are more at risk. Scientists and doctors estimate that 20 percent of people will experience panic symptoms at least once during their lives.
The explanation given is that there are other mechanisms involved, and the authors point to one: the increase in "self-efficacy" proposed by Bandura and Williams. These authors argued that a person's fundamental motivation is a sense of mastery at some task, an idea that Frank considered in psychoanalysis as something we have to work with directly. The point is that it explains that patients who can walk away when their anxiety reaches a certain level have the same or more positive outcomes and also express that they had a sense of control.
Causes of panic attacks
Exists a large number of factors that can cause a person to have a panic attack. Firstly, the reasons may be hidden in psychological changes, then experiences come first. The main symptom in this case is a strong fear that cannot be appeased. Panic attacks are caused by constant fear, nervous tension, stress, depression, and various mental illnesses. Sometimes panic can be caused by post-traumatic stress.
The patient also talks about why previous attempts to deal with these situations have failed, which is usually due to the fact that these attempts were made randomly, briefly, economically, without a sense of control, and when dysfunctional beliefs, fatalists, dominated. Jane had two signs of security: her husband's presence, or at least the knowledge of where he was, and the anxiolytic attitude that came with it, although she rarely accepted it. Homework she and her husband were instructed to compile a list of agoraphobic situations rated according to the level of anxiety.
Secondly, panic attacks can be associated with bodily disorders. In this case, in a person, symptoms concerning the human body come first. For example, he will experience severe physical pain, but any anxieties and fears will fade into the background. By the way, the disease or injury that caused the panic can increase the intensity. For example, the problem may lie in cardiac pathologies, problems of the gastrointestinal tract, organs of the endocrine system. A person can change the hormonal background, for example, as women experience nervous tension during menstruation, pregnancy and after childbirth. First of all, before treating the patient, it is necessary to diagnose the body and identify all the factors that caused the panic attack.
Each task was clearly defined on its own, rather than a level of anxiety, such as having two hours at home during the day instead of being at home until you feel anxious. The list was drawn up in such a way that at first it had its own security signals, but on last levels hierarchy was not denied.
In this session, a significant part is included in the treatment. Thus, Jane's husband entered this and the four sessions that followed her to completion. Thus, this session includes a dialogue with Jane's husband about the basics of treatment and how Jane's illness affected them. everyday life. It currently includes the husband's vision of Jane's behavior and fear and the extent to which it has affected her, and she is encouraged to actively participate.
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The development of a panic attack and its symptoms
A panic attack comes on abruptly without any warning signs. Sometimes panic occurs even while a person is sleeping. First, there is an anxiety attack. Because of this, a large amount of certain hormones are released in the human body. Arterial pressure rises sharply. This is the most common panic signal, even if there was no prior feeling of anxiety. The heart rate accelerates, breathing becomes frequent. It seems to a person that he does not have enough oxygen. After that, the next phase begins, when a person begins to move away from everything that happens. In this case, all stimuli do not affect his behavior, and the reaction appears with a delay to any signals. Then the gas circulation is disrupted carbon dioxide. After that, problems with violation of the acidity of the environment appear. Because of this, certain parts of the body become numb, the head starts to hurt, dizziness appears. All these processes lead to a feeling of fear, and because of it, hormones are re-released. The stronger the victim has an anxiety attack, the more intense the symptoms will be: sudden changes in blood pressure, suffocation, tachycardia.
The role of the significant other is perceived as the role of a coach and the task as something to be solved as a team. At this stage, it is important that the couple has good style communication. In doing so, the authors refer, for example, to the fact that a significant other does not increase the experience of panic or help him apply self-reports.
The other is instructed to be tolerant and patient and details are taken care of such as, for example, using a 0 to 8 scale scale to talk about the level of anxiety, especially when in public, thus avoiding feelings of discomfort associated with Anxiety Conversations . But it is advisable not to avoid feelings, because distraction is not good in the long run, for reasons that have already been explained. There is also a containment of the couple's concern about problems that might arise between them, such as fear that the other is too demanding or might get angry, or that the other thinks he knows the patient's feelings more than she does.
Interesting is the fact that you can not even notice. These attacks can masquerade as other illnesses that don't even look like panic attacks. It seems to the patient that he has not only a nervous breakdown, but also another more serious disease. Attacks can last from a couple of minutes to half an hour. During this time, he may feel as if everything is not happening to him. Can't concentrate on one thing. Body temperature may rise, chills, fever may appear. By the way, sometimes after a panic attack, on the contrary, the body temperature drops sharply. During the attack, sweating increases. The patient's sleep worsens. He can react sharply to any sounds or images. Sometimes it becomes difficult to swallow food. In more severe cases, there are problems with the control of the limbs. As a result, a person has a fear of losing control over his own mind and body.
The first task of influencing the lives of Jane and her husband was to sit in the middle row on the side of the theater hall, and this task is studied and rehearsed in the session. It should be practiced at least three times in the next week, and of these, at least once, Jane had to do it alone.
New danger cognitions emerge that collide with the same technique of previous cognitive restructuring. The need to run away from the task when anxiety rises is controlled by allowing yourself to take time out of the situation to practice cognitive restructuring and power recovery.
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How to get rid of panic attacks?
First, you need to analyze your own behavior and go to the hospital. It is imperative to identify the main causes of panic, because. treatment should be aimed precisely at eliminating the influence of these factors.
And Jane is encouraged not to view her difficulties as failures, but as common feature this learning process. When treatment was stopped, Jane did not panic for 8 weeks, rarely felt dizzy or unreality, and was able to move long distances.
It was very rewarding to imagine myself so close to the experience of treatment through the cognitive-behavioral approach. First, we are struck by the large gaps we see in the therapist's vision compared to our work. We would follow a line of research that is not considered important here at all. We believe that this shortcoming is at least partly the problem with which these therapies are associated.
Secondly, you can learn to control seizures on your own. Thanks to this, it will be possible to get rid of them in the very first minutes. Many methods have been developed, the use of which does not depend on the causes of the panic.
For example, one should practice meditation. This technique itself does not depend on religious worldviews. The main thing is to move away from all thoughts, calm down and relax. Moreover, during meditation it is not necessary to sit in certain postures. You just need to sit down in a way that is comfortable for a person. Meditation cannot harm a person's health, but it suppresses all attacks of nervousness, rhinestone and panic. But we must remember that a good result will be obtained only if the classes are regular and systematic.
In conclusion, the authors state that cognitive behavioral therapy was highly effective with an 80 to 100% symptom remission rate at the end of treatment, benefits that remain for at least 2 years. However, they say that there are still important difficulties, and to illustrate these , they show the case of a man who, despite being highly educated and social level and perfectly understanding theoretical basis functioning anxiety and fear, remained 5 years with a cycle of recovery and relapses that forced him to return to treatment again and again.
You also need to pay attention to proper breathing. Breathing exercises should be done every day. Such breathing exercises should be produced in the first moments, as a person realized that a feeling of fear appeared. Breathing should be even, slow and calm. You need to focus all your attention on this. By the way, it is better not to use bags for breathing, but just to breathe fresh air.
We would attribute this failure to a superficial view of the man's problem. We have already seen that he does not delve into the causes that cause the initial panic attacks or attacks, and this is precisely our principle line of action. Any experienced psychoanalyst can give examples of "panic disorder and agoraphobia" that have been translated after our approach, although we cannot provide proof of data drawn from empirical studies on so many hundreds of treatments, relapses, dropouts, etc. but the point is there is another way that this mess is also rewritten and that is what we are using.
Be sure to drive daily physical exercise. After such exercises, a person produces hormones that cause satisfaction, so that stress fades into the background. You can first meditate and then do sports exercises, or vice versa.
Sometimes the amplification method is used. We must not suppress our own fear, but accept it. By analogy, many people with injuries try to tighten their muscles and then relax them. With tension, the pain intensifies, and after relaxation, it does not seem so strong. The same applies to nervous disorders and panic.
For example, the case of a woman who did not leave her home for one year, with agoraphobia disorder caused by a surgical operation in which her uterus was removed. Her disorder was completely relieved by psychoanalytic psychotherapy treatment in less than a year, and the subsequent line consisted of a deepening of the feelings that arose as a result of this operation, a feeling of helplessness that opened the door to other people older than her. a childhood based on her relationship with her mother, who threatened to leave the house if she misbehaved - teaching her about suitcases to convince that threat.
In such difficult periods a person needs the help of relatives, relatives, friends. You can consult a doctor with a specific specialization. You can't yell at a person in such a situation. He needs support.
Reviving and expressing feelings from both the past and the present, rethinking situations, including current relationship with her husband, connecting feelings of helplessness from time to time, analyzing her life story, wounds of various kinds - at the level of narcissism, attachment, etc. it all sank into a therapeutic connection in which she felt heard, understood and legitimized, which caused her to calm herself and thus regain a sense of confidence in herself, in her own composure and strength, and in what she could expect. others.
You can go for massages.
A contrast shower is very useful.
There are also various distracting methods (such as games). At hand should always be a tincture of valerian, motherwort or corvalol. Useful for calming lemon balm, mint, St. John's wort.
With our frantic pace of life, a disorder of the nervous system can often occur. Panic attack is one of these conditions. Below we will understand what it is and why it occurs.
This is a very brief vignette of interpretation of the grounds on which the cure of the psychoanalytic orientation rests. Accustomed to this approach, we cannot help but think that the patient, whom the authors expose as a problematic case, would benefit from it. Perhaps, despite his rational understanding of the problem, this patient emotionally needed a deeper and stronger connection with the therapist - and the analysis of this connection. Since he was not told anything new on a cognitive level, every time he returned for a consultation, it is worth considering what he got with this resumption of treatment.
Today it is customary to distinguish the following types panic attacks: spontaneous, situational and conditionally situational.
If you do not go too deep into medical terms and details, then a panic attack (PA) can be called a sudden feeling by a person of unreasonable anxiety and fear. This phenomenon can manifest itself, or be one of the symptoms of other disorders. For example, in diseases of the cardiovascular system, patients often complain about the appearance of PA. A person feels a sharp attack of fear and anxiety, accompanied by hand tremors, sweating. It can last from five minutes to half an hour.
And what we are talking about is nothing but transference, which is most characteristic of our approach. The question is what factors cause panic disorder with agoraphobia overcome through such different therapeutic pathways. It may be that there are common factors that will be considered regardless of the type of approach, not directly, but because of the affective quality of the therapeutic relationship itself. Thus, cognitive-behavioral treatment delivered by a sensitive and trained psychotherapist will provide a safety net that corrects emotional experience with a direct path to the unconscious, although it will not speak directly to the characteristics of the line itself or to previous references.
What provokes the appearance of such an unpleasant symptom.
- The first factor is physiological. Metabolic disorders, tumors and other pathologies cause a huge release of cortisol and adrenaline. It is the excess of these stress hormones that gives a person a feeling of anxiety and fear, difficulty breathing, as well as tremors of the hands.
- The second reason is psychological. Depression with panic attacks can appear after the death of loved ones, due to a tendency to strong internal experiences, as well as with banal overwork.
Remember that panic attacks never just happen! If you begin to feel these symptoms, you should definitely find the cause and eliminate them as soon as possible. It is possible that panic is caused by an adrenal adenoma.
And on the other hand, in psychoanalytic therapy, the affective revision in the sessions in the context of reinsurance will make the sensations lose their catastrophic character, one indirectly learns that they are strong enough to endure them. But it is clear that there are patients who will benefit more from one type of treatment than another. A possible explanation, already mentioned above, is that there are two classes of causes, some of which cause the disorder and others that help to maintain it.
Psychoanalytic treatment focuses on the former, while behavioral cognitive attention focuses on the latter. If so, depending on which factors are most important to each patient, he or she will benefit most from one type of therapy or the other. In the first type of patient, among whom would be the problematic patient of the authors, what might be called the causative factors deriving from the disorder would be most decisive and thus benefit from psychoanalytic treatment.
How long does an attack last
A panic attack lasts in different ways. This is due to various signs, including the effects of depersonalization and derealization. Subsequent experiences have a great influence on a person: fears of dying and going crazy, fear of fainting, etc. The panic attack itself is very short - a maximum of twenty minutes.
PA tend to be repetitive. For example, if the crisis lasted for some time, then there is a period of calm, and then again, everything can repeat itself. Of great importance in this case is the will of the person, his awareness and understanding of the problem.
Panic attacks can come on suddenly and unexpectedly. Therefore, one must always be ready to meet fear face to face.
Panic attacks on the plane
This condition occurs in a person suffering from aerophobia. There can be quite a few reasons for fear, and all of them, as a rule, psychological nature. First of all, this is due to the excitement that any passenger experiences before the flight.
There are also other reasons.
- A person feels helpless on board the liner. The subconscious tells him: “You are not able to control the situation if an accident occurs and the plane crashes. You won't be able to save yourself and you will be shattered."
- He experiences unusual sensations: vibrations, air pockets, a feeling of lack of ground under his feet.
- The individual has experienced psychological trauma previously. For example, aerophobia developed due to the loss of a close relative who died in a plane crash.
- Fear provokes the sounds of an aircraft.
Fear of flying in an airplane and panic attacks The attack begins even before departure, for 1 - 2 or several days. Panic overcomes a person, as soon as he thinks about the need to fly somewhere. In the salon, a true attack begins, as a rule, not different from a normal attack.
Passengers flying for the first time and never suffering from PA can experience the same conditions.
Special techniques help in the fight against an attack of fear. For example, the method virtual reality. The psychologist connects to the human mind a stimulator that recreates the feeling of flying on an airplane. The whole situation is "lived" as if for real, from beginning to end. It is noteworthy that the same technique helps people in survival courses.
Panic attack before bed
At night, a person experiences additional psychological pressure that can increase the severity of the syndrome. Complete silence and silence frighten the soul, make you alert. The subconscious at this moment only adds fuel to the fire, drawing scary pictures. As a result, the attack only intensifies.
Panic before sleep causes insomnia Night attacks aggravate the physical condition. In most cases, they provoke insomnia or anxiety, or become harbingers of nightmares. Fear hurts the most sudden death fueled by the subconscious mind that they die at night.
Methods of dealing with this condition are different, since it all depends on individual features. In any case, you should try to sleep. To do this, you can take a plant-based sedative or a glass of cognac or drink a glass of milk. Onions eaten before bed help well.
PA and coffee
Does frequent use coffee on a change in well-being during panic attacks? The answer to the question is found in the product description itself. An ambiguous drink, the use of which can cause both side effects, and provide beneficial actions. So, coffee activates the digestive tract, but, at the same time, provokes the development of gastritis.
Scientists have proven the link between caffeine and stress. And even more - they claim that coffee increases the duration of panic attacks and the frequency. Their arguments cannot be called unfounded, because the subjects drank coffee regularly, and about half faced severe anxiety.
Is coffee harmful or not for panic attacks? Whether this drink is harmful or not. Again, everything is individual. After coffee, some people feel relaxed, others - the grains of the Orom tribes excite them to the limit, they cannot sleep, their adrenaline rises. Yes, and throughout long history it, as soon as it was not called: “black blood of the Turks”, “useful schaube”, etc. Clipping from a medical journal of the ⅩⅤⅠⅠ century: “The drink is worthy of the highest praise. First of all, this is due to useful properties and the power to drive out fits of anger and vulgarity from the mind.
Panic attacks and vegetovascular dystonia
VSD is directly related to blood vessels. Since in this case their functioning is impaired, attacks can also appear on the basis of dystonia. The symptomatology is as follows - a feeling of fear and anxiety, profuse sweating on the palms and forehead, hand tremor, a feeling of squeezing in the ears. In this case, complex treatment is necessary.
VSD is a syndrome. A direct connection with panic disorder is immediately visible: similar symptoms and sensations. However, panic attacks in our former country were practically not heard, and they did not want to. Medicine implied vegetovascular or neurocirculatory dystonia. If, in addition to the classic high-risk symptoms, agoraphobia and depressive states were observed, then the doctors, without thinking for a long time, wrote in the patient's history - "crisis course of the VVD."
Why was this diagnosis so disliked in the USSR? It's all about ideology. soviet man either completely mentally healthy or not. It is not befitting the working class to suffer from intermediate neurotic illnesses. And, in general, many neuroses and phobias Soviet people, including the Aesculapius, was considered simply a weakness.
It is now medicine has made a huge leap forward. And about 20-30 years ago, it was extremely difficult for patients tormented by fears and borderline conditions. Some still feel the results of the Soviet approach. Years of patients being eaten away internal conflicts treated for VSD.
Panic attacks and the army
Whether they take into the army with panic attacks, guys of military age often ask. It would seem, how can you send a person suffering from fears to defend the homeland. Unmotivated anxiety drives him crazy, does not allow him to calm down.
On the other hand, the state of panic does not bring any structural changes in the patient's body, and, in fact, he is not considered as such (sick). It is extremely problematic to confirm the diagnosis of unfitness for service at the medical board in the military registration and enlistment office, only some kind of mental illness is appropriate here.
But if, along with psycho-emotional symptoms, the conscript also has somatic abnormalities, then this should be indicated in the medical history. It must be opened if a person does not want to serve. TO physical features include disorders of the cardiac system, blood problems, loss of orientation in space, sensory disturbances, and much more.
The PA is no excuse to shy away from defending their homeland. On the contrary, it can be a chance to change yourself, your reactions and subconscious attitudes.
Celebrities with PA problems
Quite a bit of famous people at one time suffered from panic attacks. Some shared their fears with the press.
Not only representatives of the weaker sex, but also brutal machos spoke about their fears.
Here are some celebrities with panic attacks.
PA treatment
IN Lately You can find many techniques for treating anxiety without medication. For example, it has become fashionable to use a conspiracy from panic attacks. It is worth noting that such a "treatment" rarely brings an effect, except perhaps a temporary sedation. The main thing to do is to eliminate the very cause of the appearance of a panic attack, and then everything will return to normal.
Hypnosis works well for panic attacks. He is considered quite fast method, during which a specialist helps to find the cause of sudden seizures. Today, this type of treatment is carried out in qualified medical centers, it is the least dangerous and very effective.
Although homeopathy has come to be considered a pseudoscience, it helps to get rid of PA. Recovery occurs at the level of the psyche, the feeling of fear, increased heart rate, sensation of a lump in the throat and other characteristic symptoms of the condition are quickly removed.
Psychotherapy is the most best method cure, but also the longest. Thanks to methods proven over the years, it is possible to find and eliminate the cause that sits deep in the subconscious of a person. Today there are several branches of psychoanalysis.
Atarax in panic attacks
A drug such as Atarax is used quite often for panic attacks. Doctors prescribe it for purely neurological problems and mild forms of depression.
Despite the extensive list of possible side effects, doctors unanimously claim that the medicine copes well with panic attacks and produces a lasting effect. May be given in tandem with other antidepressants. However, the drug should be used under the strict supervision of a physician, as it has many contraindications.
Consequences: are seizures dangerous?
The consequences of panic attacks threaten the following.
- During a panic and a vegetative crisis, a person begins to take many different drugs in a row. Thus, he tries to relieve not only mental, but also physical pains - to reduce pressure, calm tachycardia, etc. In addition, some doctors who see a patient in a state of neurosis, without immediately deciding on the problem, inject a strong medicine. For a healthy heart, this is extremely dangerous!
- A person may develop phobias against the background of PA. For example, if he rarely leaves the house, then there will be agoraphobia or amaxophobia (fear of transport).
- Anxiety exacerbates the course of various chronic ailments.
- PA can cause miscarriage in pregnant women.
- A constant feeling of fear is extremely dangerous for people with suicidal behavior.
PA should be treated as early as possible to avoid social problems. Almost all people suffering from an anxiety state experience isolation, a decrease in the quality of life, and a limitation of comfort space. The clinic for panic attacks can become the very place where a person will find peace and understanding. Anxiety is not a common disease. This is the call of the soul, a signal for changes within oneself.
