Have you ever experienced having a panic attack? Do you think you can picture how you looked like during an episode? It is important to know if what you are experiencing is a panic attack or something worse - at least physically - a heart attack.
A panic attack veers more on the emotional/psychological side.
Here are some symptoms of panic attacks: Inappropriate Anxiety or Fear One of the most popular symptoms is inappropriate anxiety and irrational fear.
This means that you are afraid of something that will happen even if there is no logic behind that fear.
For example, it is understandable to fear falling if you are standing on a tree's branch.
However, it is inappropriate to actually believe that you will die once you step out in front of a group of people you are supposed to give a talk to.
While fear of embarrassment is natural, fear of death in such a situation is abnormal.
Disturbed Thoughts In relation to your inappropriate show of anxiety or fear, disturbed thoughts could color the way you look at things.
Disturbed thinking is one of many symptoms that may also be symptoms of something psychologically worse.
Rapid Heartbeat or Palpitations Because of the perceived fear, you may experience palpitations as one of your symptoms.
This can cause you to breathe rapidly.
Some people may think that you are having some sort of attack of a physical kind.
They may suspect asthma or heart failure.
The good thing about the mistake is that at least someone will be coming to assist you.
Choking Sensation Have you heard about the expression "he choked"? This simply means that the person panicked and lost what he is supposed to say or lost in a game he should have won.
In terms of these symptoms, choking is more literal.
You actually feel as if there is a big lump in your throat, preventing you from breathing properly.
Depersonalization When you have a panic attack, you feel detached from your body.
You feel as if you are looking at yourself from the outside, helpless and unable to do anything.
Depersonalization could heighten the panic because you feel as if you cannot make your body move according to how you want it to move.
Feelings of Numbness In relation to the depersonalization, you may feel numb and cold all over.
This feeling of numbness can make you feel like an outsider inside your own body.
It makes your movements very heavy.
Dreamy Feeling This symptom is also related to depersonalization.
You feel as if you are in a dream state, a non-lucid one at that.
You cannot control this particular dream, which borders on a major nightmare.
Losing Control of Bowels Quite an unpleasant symptom of anxiety attacks is the loss of bowel control.
This may not happen to all people experiencing panic attacks, but it sure does make the whole episode even more embarrassing.
There are a lot more symptoms that signal a panic attack.
Those who come to the rescue of a person displaying such symptoms must be able to discount other possibilities, such as a heart attack or an asthma attack.