What is an Anxiety Attack?

Are you feeling restless, nervous, or tense? If yes, then you can be experiencing the symptoms of an anxiety attack. Visit the best Mental Health Clinic in East New York or log on to www.doralhw.org.

Normal anxiety is a part of our everyday life. Anxiety is our natural response when our body feels threatened, in danger, under pressure, or facing a challenging situation. But if you feel persistent worries and fear about your everyday situations, you suffer from an anxiety disorder. When its episodes reach their peak then it causes anxiety attacks

An anxiety attack can be defined as a sudden and intense episode of fear and anxiety that can occur suddenly and unexpectedly for no reason, but some triggers can cause this condition. People often use this term with panic attacks interchangeably, but both are different conditions. Even though they share some physical and emotional symptoms or might occur at the same time, the key difference is anxiety attacks can be mild, moderate, or severe but panic attacks are most severe.

Causes

Specific situations where you develop anxiety or fear are:

Become a parent
Switching jobs
Suffering from illness
Monetary crisis
Death of dear ones
Getting divorced
Getting married
Parenting and family pressures
Public speaking activities
Taking a high-level exam
Work-related stress
Loss of mental function
Diagnosed with a chronic condition

Certain medical conditions also cause these attacks such as:

Phobia
PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder)
Drug or alcohol abuse
Excessive caffeine intake
Medication or supplements side effects
Genetic factors
Major stressors in life
Respiratory disorders
Diabetes
Heart disease
Hyperthyroidism
Chronic pain

Anxiety attacks can happen to certain anxiety disorders such as:

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): This condition happens due to unrealistic and excessive worry without any specific cause.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): This condition is caused by intrusive obsessions or compulsions which are difficult to manage and create significant distress.
Panic Disorder: This condition happens when panic attacks hit you unexpectedly.
Social anxiety disorder (SAD): This condition is caused by an excessive level of self-consciousness or the fear of social situations.
Phobias: It is a type of phobia that causes an intense fear of certain things, objects, or situations.

Symptoms

Symptoms can vary from person to person some experience mild symptoms while some have moderate to severe symptoms, including:

Increased heart rate
Trouble sleeping
Nausea or diarrhea
Hot flashes, and chills.
Sweating
Breathe rapidly
Feeling weak or tired
lightheadedness or headaches
Choking or trouble breathing
Losing control or feeling crazy.
Dry mouth
Trouble in concentration
Difficulty in controlling your worries.
Trembling
Try to manage your anxiety.
A simulation that runs in mind about a situation repeatedly.
Depression or worried about the future
Sense of danger or panic will occur
Chest pain

Anxiety attack vs. Panic attack

While these terms are used interchangeably and have similar symptoms both are different terms.

A panic attack can be defined as an abrupt surge of intense fear or discomfort which causes physical and mental symptoms. Its episode reaches its peak within minutes or hours.

Whereas an anxiety attack is caused by emotional and protective responses that disrupt your daily life. Its episodes can be mild, moderate, or severe depending on the cause or duration of the episode.

The main difference between panic and anxiety is in the intensity or length of the episode that people experience as panic attacks develop suddenly and reach their peak in 10 minutes while anxiety can last for months and develop gradually.

A panic attack is linked with panic disorders, which give a sense of detachment from the world, self, fear of dying and losing control. On the other hand, an anxiety attack is linked to anxiety, anxiety disorders, medications, and traumatic stress is behind the causes of an anxiety attack.

Diagnosis and Treatment

To diagnose anxiety attacks, first doctors ask about the anxiety symptoms and then run a physical exam to see if there are any medical conditions that lead to your symptoms. If there is no medical cause, then the doctor orders further evaluation. While anxiety attack has no formal diagnosis, you can be diagnosed with anxiety disorder types based on your symptoms. Your doctors ask you questions about your symptoms to determine the diagnosis on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM -5 -TR) for further evaluation.

Experts recommend that everyone over the age of 13 should take a screening test for anxiety but should always talk to a doctor if they have concerns about the symptoms they experience.

For treatment, therapies, medications, or coping techniques are used. Therapies like Cognitive behavioral therapy or exposure therapy are used to reduce the general feeling of anxiety and anxiety disorder.

Medicines such as benzodiazepines, SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors), and SNRIs (Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors) are used to treat the symptoms of anxiety. And coping methods help to modify your lifestyle to reduce or remove the chances of having those attacks. It includes:

Getting proper sleep.
Learning stress-releasing methods such as deep breathing, and meditation.
Follow an exercise plan regularly which is beneficial to improving mental health.
Building social support helps to improve your mental health and your well-being.

Anxiety attacks happen in the form of episodes that are triggered by several reasons. While mostly it is not dangerous, in several cases, it can cause severe symptoms. But you can reduce the symptoms of anxiety attacks by taking treatment and improving your life.

Looking for a mental health clinic for treatment?

Doral Health and Wellness has the best Doctors and Psychiatrists that specialize in Behavioral health make accurate diagnoses, and craft tailored treatment programs. Visit us at 1797 Pitkin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11212.

In order to schedule a consultation with the best Mental health Clinic in East New York, please visit www.doralhw.org.

Call us at 1-347-384-5690 to schedule a consultation.

What is an Anxiety Attack?