Cure Panic Attacks

It is common for those who use (or even abuse) alcohol to also develop anxiety disorders. This can come from a pre-existing condition where an anxiety disorder already existed, or panic attacks can develop from chronic drinking.

Some people drink to alleviate problems. Things sometimes seem to disappear while intoxicated. The same holds true for problems with anxiety and stress. Having a few drinks (or many) can often relax ones nerves. The more you drink the better you will feel and before long you are not thinking about whatever it was that was making you feel anxious earlier. Alcohol can have a calming effect on your system.

However, the next day you may experience the opposite effect. Whatever anxiety you had the day before is now much worse. In addition to the previous days stress, your body experiences side effects from the use of alcohol (which is also a drug). Shakiness, irregular breathing, headache, and other symptoms often occur. If you were having problems with anxiety the day before you now may find your condition has progressed substantially.

In addition to drinking causing increased anxiety, it also leaves one vulnerable to alcoholism. Once you have gotten drunk to relax yourself it will be very tempting to do it again. Even though you may experience increased anxiety afterwords, you may remember how relaxing it was to have a few drinks. Once you have used drinks to alleviate stress on a few occasions you may already have developed a dependency on alcohol. Your brain chemistry could be changing based on the effects of the chemicals you are consuming.

In short, drinking can cause increased anxiety and if you have a problem with panic attacks or high anxiety you should try and avoid alcohol. The benefits are not worth the risks. Sure, you may experience immediate relief from panic attacks for one night, but the next day it may be much worse.

Anxiety and panic attacks can effect people differently. For some they are terrified of flying and will experience much fear during a flight. In many cases these people simply will avoid flying. However, others experince anxiety in a much less dangerous situations. Namely, they have anxiety while taking an exam.

If this has happened to you, at first you may not have known you had a panic attack. You may have felt that you were very nervous for some reason. You could say to yourself that you were much more uptight than usual. While it may have been a shock that you were so nervous it was nothing more than that in your mind.

If you have experienced this you could have a suppeceptibiltiy to panic attacks or even an anxiety disorder. If you wound up doing very poorly on the exam due to anxiety even though you knew the materiel and are generally a good student, then panic attacks are interfering with your life and you should do something about it. No one should allow test anxiety to prevent them from doing well academically.

There are some techniques you can use to help overcome panic attacks and test anxiety. The first thing to remember is if you keep your mind completly occupied the anxiety will dissappear. Sometimes when people have anxiety it is normal to busy themselves with doing housework or interacting in safe enviornemnts like talking with friends. So, keeping you mind busy can be very important.

Try to avoid thinking exclusively on the things that are causing your panic attacks. If you are worried about how a bad grade will effect your academic record put your mind somewhere else. Think about the actual exam materiel. What did you study? Try to focus on the actual topics. Clear your head of the fear. This may sound simple, but it really does work.

Of course, you need to know precisely what is causing your panic attacks. There are many things that can trigger anxiety. Did you have a bad experience on an exam before? Do you have intense fear of having a panic attack? Are you hiding something from yourself or avoiding anything?

If it helps try keeping a journal of your experiences. When you have a panic attack, describe all the specific details as soon as you can. So, right after the exam is over try to make a journal entry. Remember everything that was going through your mind when you had the panic and write it down. This can help you to identify the cause of your anxiety. Pinpointing the cause isn’t always obvious. However, once you know what it is you will be well on your way to overcoming test anxiety. In many cases you just need to take small steps in coming to terms with your fear. Once you remove the fear by facing it in a safe way and getting through unscathed, then you will have overcome your anxiety.

One of the problems with stress and anxiety is that it can build over time. If it continues to build over a number of days or weeks it can become very unmanageable. Of course on the flip side, one of the best things you can do to counter panic attacks is to experience something very positive where you aren’t stressed. If this happens enough the anxiety usually disappears. The cause of your anxiety may be directly related to the positive and negative things you experience each day. So one thing that can really help when you begin to feel stressed or that you may have a panic attack is to reduce your anxiety right away before it can build into something much more debilitating.

So, how do you reduce your anxiety right when you feel a possible panic attack emerging? The best thing you can do is occupy your mind on something else. Remember, if you do this before your anxiety is severe it may not be as difficult to reduce it. With that in mind, try to think about when and where your panic attacks are happening. Is it the same place and time each day? Is panic triggered by social situations, or perhaps a certain person?

If you can identify the cause of your anxiety you can then put together a few new techniques to counter panic when it is in its early stages. You will know your triggers and then can plan ahead what you will do when it happens.

As for the actually techniques, think about anything that you can do which doesn’t give you anxiety. Talking to a friend, getting busy with work, or anything else. Then think about the triggers that cause your panic attacks. Is there anything you can do to occupy yourself with something else? How can you take your mind off the anxiety? Let’s say you have problems during meetings at work. You could strike up a conversation with someone you know before the meeting and talk about something that is very low stress. Get a casual conversation going where you can laugh a little.

It may take a little planning ahead of time but you will be amazed at how effective it can be to eliminate panic attacks when you simply occupy your mind with something else. You can still do all the activities that you need to do, but you may approach some of them a little differently.

Many people experience symptoms of high anxiety or panic attacks when visiting the doctor. Rapid heartbeat, sweating of the palms, and wanting to leave the appointment are common reactions or symptoms of high stress. When I first began having problems with panic attacks I went to my doctor and I remember having my blood pressure reading sky high. This happened several times. I knew it was just because of my anxiety since I took my own reading quite regular. It always seemed a little strange when they would tell me my blood pressure was really high and would ask me if there was any reason for it. Duh, I have a problem with panic attacks. Of course that is why!

Other scenarios that can cause these symptoms are public speaking and job interviews. The reason I bring this up is because many people have high anxiety in these situations. So, don’t feel like something is terribly wrong with you. It is uncomfortable, but quite normal as well.

Two things you should take note of if you feel extremely nervous in these situations are:

• You may be prone to panic attacks and possible anxiety disorder
• There is a good chance you can manage anxiety and overcome panic attacks on your own

One of the simplest and most effective forms of anxiety therapy is to focus your mind on something other than what is causing your anxiety. In other words, stay busy. I realize this may not seem possible when in the Doctor’s office, giving a speech, or at a job interview, but if you really think about it there are things you can do to eliminate your anxiety.

One thing I have used to keep my mind occupied during a speech is to get the audience involved. If I have high anxiety during a speech and feel that I have to continue to speak for an extended duration of time, well that is not a comforting feeling and it can trigger panic. However, if I can get the audience talking, especially if a group conversation results, I find my anxiety is significantly reduced. In fact, I even feel confident and can be very a effective speaker. This isn’t always easy to do. Not every presentation lends itself to this and not every audience is receptive to adding comments or asking questions. But, if you can engage them into the presentation it can take the pressure off of you and make it more of a group discussion.

That is only one example of anxiety therapy you can provide for yourself. If you think about it enough you can probably come up with ideas on how you can change what you normally do to relive the pressure that is on you and help to eliminate panic attacks. Just remember, stay busy with something other than what is causing your anxiety. Occupy yourself with activities that are comfortable and you may find that anxiety is no longer a problem. It may take some practice and effort, but it is one option you have in defeating panic attacks.