Anxiety Attacks and Disorders: Signs and Symptoms

The feeling of anxiety or anxiety attacks is not new to all of us. We all feel tense and scared when we are facing stressful situations or when we are under pressure. All of these are normal feelings. Anxiety is the body’s initial reaction and response to danger. But when anxiety cannot be controlled even with the situations that don’t warrant such an alarm and reaction and when it is alreadyinterfering with your daily activities and relationship with other people, then you may be dealing with a case of anxiety disorder.

Although most of the time anxiety can cause unpleasant and uncomfortable feelings, it is not always a bad thing since anxiety can help us stay motivated to solve problems, spur us to action and aid us to stay focused and alert. Disorders of anxiety attack child, teenagers, and adults alike.

What are the symptoms for anxiety attacks?

The primary symptoms of anxiety disorder are feelings of fears, tense and worries that are irrational and which usually interfere with school, family and work responsibilities. Another very common symptom is when you experience sudden and unexpected attacks of panic episodes that are heart pounding.

In addition to the primary symptoms, the emotional symptoms of anxiety are irritability, restlessness, feelings of dread or apprehension, losing control or going crazy, watching for signs of danger, trouble concentrating, always anticipating the worst and feeling like your mind is blank, unreal, detached, jumpy and tense.

Anxiety disorder also has physical symptoms for it is more than just feelings. The physical symptoms of anxiety are commonly mistaken for a medical illness. These symptoms include sweating, pounding heart, chest pains, shortness of breath, insomnia, muscle tension, tremors, twitches, headaches, choking sensations, chills, shaking, trembling, hot flashes, frequent diarrhea or urination, hyperventilation, stomach upset, stomach cramps, nausea, fatigue and dizziness.

If you experience these signs and symptoms and they just don’t go away, then there’s a chance that you are suffering from anxiety disorder. An anxiety attack usually occurs suddenly or without any warnings. In most cases, there is an obvious trigger before an episode occurs, such as being trapped in an elevator or just by the thought of having a big exam in the next hour. In some cases, anxiety attacks can happen anytime even without any triggers.

An episode of anxiety attack usually lasts for ten minutes, but there are cases wherein it could last for more than half an hour, which is quite rare. During the attack, you will feel an intense terror as if you are totally losing control and about to die. The physical symptoms are frightening experiences that people with anxiety disorder believe that they are suffering from a heart attack.

Anxiety attacks can be very frustrating especially that they are very hard to control and can happen in public places. The best way to handle the case is to stop anxiety panic attacks with the use of treatment methods such as therapy and anti-anxiety medications. It is best to consult a psychiatrist to totally evaluate if what you are experiencing is really an anxiety disorder so that the right medications can be prescribed.