How to Survive and Overcome Panic Attacks

Possibly only people who suffer from panic attacks truly understand what a horrible and debilitating condition this can be. Symptoms can range from headaches, a tightness in the chest, general throat constriction feeling faint and the feeling that you are being sucked into a dark, deep black hole of imminent insanity. Sufferers are often drawn into a cycle of prescriptive drugs that may alleviate the symptoms, but they do not address the root cause of this terrible condition.

Panic attacks can cause the sufferer to turn into a housebound, quivering bundle of nerves afraid to leave the house, because they know that certain things will trigger the dreaded panic attack. Agoraphobia is quite often misunderstood, to be a condition where people have a fear of wide open spaces. In fact, it is the fear of places and situations that will trigger this condition. These can be shopping malls, seminars, restaurants and buses trainings aeroplanes etc. Depending on the individual, episodes can occur from several times daily to very rare events.

If you or a loved one are a sufferer, there are nonprescriptive alternatives to this condition. Firstly, some understanding of what happens in the body and its chemistry will go a long way to alleviate the overpowering fear factor of the onset of various symptoms. All sufferers know that niggling initial feeling that precedes an attack, and usually shortly thereafter, experience all the symptoms of a full-blown panic attack. Once the sufferer comes out of the attack, they are usually left exhausted and drained for a considerable period of time.

The typical sufferer at the onset of the early symptoms goes into full fight or flight mode. And this is human nature, as we have been conditioned for millions of years by the fear factor. Your life is in danger, you need this extra pump of adrenaline in order to survive, yes, fear is a survival mechanism. Within a matter of a few seconds, the brain chemistry alters dramatically, pumping massive amounts of adrenaline and as the saying goes, fear begets fear.

What sufferers do not realize in this situation is that trying to fight the panic attack is exactly what is triggering further symptoms that lead to a full-blown episode and so the cycle continues. One may ask, how can you not fight a panic attack? This ugly monster, that is driving me or loved one to the edge of self-destruction? Herein lies the answer to the mastery of controlling this condition. One of the greatest fears is a total loss of control, and even insanity, ensuing from an attack. Has this ever happened to sufferer? Very unlikely, the greatest fear is never actually realized.

The first and most fundamental step to overcoming this condition, with non-medicinal help is to not fight it. Very easy to say, extremely difficult to do, but again realize that you have not yet gone mad. You have not yet totally lost control. Each time you have had an attack, you have managed to overcome it, eventually, with debilitating consequences. Consider that in this situation, you are not fighting your condition. You are attempting to control your body chemistry, and one of the most primal of emotions. At the onset of the first symptoms with which you are most likely more than familiar you need to place yourself in a situation whereby you can just say to yourself. Okay, do your worst let the panic attack take control. What have you got to lose?

The very first time you are actually able to do this, you will find that the symptoms actually subside fairly rapidly. What you have done is prevented this chemical process in your brain, this primal fear factor that is chemically injecting you and forcing this fight or flight response to an emotional overload of sensation. This is the most difficult step in overcoming this condition, but once you have actually done it you'll feel the quality of life that you previously thought you had lost forever. The next steps are mere stepping stones! Realize your condition is fueled by a fear of fear itself, understand that fear and it's underlying role and be on your way to a panic attack free existence.