by Robert Wiggins

Created on: March 20, 2010

In scientific terms, panic attack symptoms are simply anxiety. Having been a person that used to struggle with panic attacks regularly I know the dread that accompanies one of these bouts.

Panic attack symptoms really started to negatively affect my life, and I felt like no one understood the pain and suffering I was going through. I got horrible advice on how to deal with them. People told me to breathe into a bag, or take medication, but I never got any concrete advice on how to deal with them. This made me feel even more isolated…

So what are some panic attack symptoms you should look out for?

1) The biggest panic attack symptom there is, is the fear of having another attack. If you are always scared of being dizzy or having your chest tighten up, then more than likely you are suffering from an anxious disorder. If you find yourself consciously avoiding specific situations or places because deep down inside you know you are going to exhibit the symptoms, then you are suffering from panic attacks.

2)  Tingling and numbness through your body. This is another common symptom cause by panic attacks. People who experience heart palpitations and anxiety often think they are having heart problems. They do not realize that this is a classic panic attack symptom. If you do exhibit these symptoms, play it safe and see a doctor!

3)  Another extremely common panic attack symptom is the feeling of being smothered. This symptom usually scares people a lot and causes them to slip deeper into a panic attack.

When you breathe too fast your body’s carbon dioxide and oxygen levels are no longer in equilibrium. When you breathe too much and too fast you can experience breathlessness, or you can start to hyperventilate… This used to happen to me a lot and I would think I was choking… It felt like I was being smothered by a pillow.

If you are experiencing these symptoms then you are probably experiencing panic attacks. They can be scary when they happen, but once you learn how to treat them like I did, they start to not even bother you. If you can work on modifying your behavior you are well on the way to defeating panic attacks. I usually recommend behavior modification because I really hate the medications that they give you. I refuse to go through life living on cloud 9 like a zombie.

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