What Happens During an Anxiety Attack?

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Apr 21, 2022

✨POV✨: Maybe you've been there before or know someone who's experienced an anxiety attack. Either way - you now know what could be behind an anxiety attack and ways to overcome it!

It's no easy feat to overcome the anxious thoughts that make your mind feel like a hostage situation.

This is why "just relax" feels like pointless advice to give to someone.

So, it's not that no one wants to feel relaxed, it's more like how...?

First things first - what are anxiety attacks? 🥶

This is when past traumatic events that were life-threatening or felt like one still cause stress and anxiety beyond your capacity to think and function.

Fear overwhelms you just at the thought of those anxiety-inducing event/situation.

You feel physical sensations of anxiety creeping in and there's a gradual build-up of fear.

This is when there's trouble breathing and constant fear and anxiety.

Soon enough, managing stress and anxiety seems like a far-fetched reality.

What's the Difference Between a Panic Attack and an Anxiety Attack? 🧐

People who experience panic attacks know how intense and lingering panic attacks can be.

The manifestations of this one aren't that subtle or moderate, like anxiety attacks.

But, panic attacks can occur out of nowhere and can have severe symptoms like losing control and, ultimately, feelings of impending doom. You can't really shrug off these feelings and move on as if nothing happened.

Signs and symptoms: anxiety attacks vs. panic attacks 👀

👉🏽 Anxiety attacks

Anxiety attack symptoms can sometimes go unnoticed. This is because most of its giveaways are silent.

Here are some signs that it's an anxiety attack:

There's muscle tension and stiffness in the neck. There can also be heart palpitations or chest pain.

You're easily irritated, and almost everything feels like a stressor.

There's overall worry and nervousness about whether a past stressful event is going to repeat in the future.

And with all this going on, sleep never comes easily to you.

👉🏽 Panic attacks

Panic attacks typically hit you out of nowhere. It rarely comes with a warning and stays for however long it wants to.

Here are some symptoms of a panic attack:

You feel like there's a tight grip around your neck - gripping harder by the second.

There's chest pain and difficulty breathing.

There's extreme anxiety about not knowing what's causing this that you're now confused and afraid.

You feel impending doom lurking around, and you're convinced it's a heart attack.

Types of anxiety disorder 🧐

Know that your anxiety symptoms did not just show up from nowhere.

The things that trigger stress for you stem from specific situations in your childhood or genetic and environmental factors like tradition/religion that shaped unhealthy coping mechanisms - which can also impact mental health.

Here are some of the different ways that anxiety disorders can manifest as:

👉🏽 Generalized anxiety disorder

When everyday things like work, school, or even the household chores you have in daily life give you anxiety when there's no warranted reason to be anxious - that's generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

The anxiety symptoms manifest through muscle tension or muscle aches; there's trouble sleeping because of your excessive anxiety and constant worry.

👉🏽 Panic disorder

When your anxiety hits overdrive, and you cannot think straight or focus without this excessive worry that's transitioning into intense fear, heart palpitations, and chest pain (anxiety symptoms) - it can end up as a panic attack.

And frequent panic attacks lead to panic disorder, a type of mental health disorder.

These panic attacks (or panic disorder) can even stem from a past traumatic event that's still so fresh in your mind, leading to those physical symptoms of the panic disorder.

👉🏽 Obsessive-compulsive disorder

When your anxious, obsessive thoughts are so persistent and convincing that you start working on these thoughts by behaving in a certain way or pattern that may not be the healthiest - this could indicate that your anxiety disorders stem from underlying mental health conditions like OCD.

Here's what to do the next time an anxiety attack creeps in 🤗

🥰 3 things to say

💪🏽 "I am right where I'm supposed to be, and I am in control."

🌻 "These are just symptoms of anxiety that I know how to overcome."

💜 "I will give myself the time and love to overcome this, slowly and calmly."

Or, heard of being?

This is a one-stop app for all things feelings and guided mini sessions and therapies to help deal with them.

The best part?

These are customized mini guided sessions designed by mental health specialists!

So the next time you want to give yourself some self love and motivation, check this mini guided session out: I want to lift my mood up.

💪🏽😗 3 things to do

🌬 Belly breathing

Since anxiety attacks or panic attacks can cause breathlessness or shortness of breath, intentionally taking deeep breaths in till your tummy is full can help calm your breathing.

Knowing a couple of deep breathing exercises that you can easily remember will lessen the intense feeling of anxiety and panic.

Like, 444.

A deep breath in for 4 secs.

Hold it for another 4.

And release it for another 4.

Or, you can let being make that step easier. The next time you feel your anxiety creeping in, let this mini guided session help you find your calm : I feel like I might have a panic attack.

🧘🏽‍♂️ Relaxation techniques

This can be yoga, a few minutes of meditation and focused breathing, or even just a 10-minute walk.

While breathing helps boost mental well-being, physical movement helps improve blood flow and oxygen levels.

Guess what - with being, you get to access guided sessions to help improve focus and concentration, and overall mood!

Here, check this out: I want to make meditation a daily habit.

🚰 Water breaks to calm your nerves

When in doubt, sip on water.

There's evidence that water not only helps clear out toxins in our body but also helps clear out the toxic build-up of thoughts in our mind - not in the same way, duh.

When you're dehydrated, there's a shift in the happy hormones in your brain - dopamine, and serotonin.

If you’re looking for ways to make hydration a habit - being’s got you. Here: I want to drink more water everyday.

Keeping yourself hydrated helps boost these happy hormones, keeping you feeling relatively calmer and more like yourself ;)

Before we wrap up, 🤗

Know that your anxiety attacks are just signs that show what needs healing.

The more you learn about what triggers your anxiety disorders and anxiety attacks, the less scary and strange they feel.

This way you can prevent panic attacks or anxiety attacks and even lessen panic attack symptoms or the symptoms of anxiety disorders.

Fortunately, with being, these feelings of anxiety and panic (or any feeling, if you think about it) can be dealt with in a healthy way.

The best part?

You get to access them any time of the day, and at any place.

Your journey to the other side of anxiety has begun - be proud!

Disclaimer

This is not a substitute for therapy.

Visit your nearest mental health professional and wellness professionals for more information on your mental health issues/mental disorders and physical symptoms of anxiety disorders, panic disorders and unexpected panic attacks, and ongoing stress about a chronic health condition. They offer medically reviewed advice, diagnosis, or treatment like exposure therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, and other ways to treat anxiety or diagnosed anxiety disorder.