Having a panic attack is one of the most frightening experiences you can have. But it can help a lot if you can recognize panic attack symptoms for what they are. Here you'll discover those symptoms, what causes panic (anxiety) attacks, and, how to eliminate them naturally.

PANIC ATTACK SYMPTOMS

Typical symptoms are; sudden terror or panic, racing heartbeat, shortness of breath / hyperventilation, sweating, tight chest / throat, tingling extremities, dizziness / lightheadedness, headache, hot / cold flashes, nausea, feeling of detachment from reality, feeling of some impending doom.

Panic attacks happen without warning and for no obvious reason. This is why you experience the fear, panic and the feeling that something serious is happening, such as a heart attack. It can take several attacks before you realize that you are having a panic attack rather than something serious. In my own case it wasn't until my third or fourth attack that I was able to identify what was happening to me.

But, once you can recognize the early symptoms of an anxiety attack, you can help yourself to stop it in its tracks or, at the very least, minimise its effects and reduce its timescale. However, in order to do this, you need to first understand what causes panic (anxiety) attacks...

PANIC ATTACK CAUSES

In lay-men terms, a panic / anxiety attack occurs when your anxiety / stress levels shoot up to such a level that your body's natural defence mechanism is triggered because it mistakenly believes you're in danger. This is an in-built defense that is used to protect you in dangerous situations. This is sometimes called your body's 'flight or flight' response.

The way it works is that, when your body senses danger, it triggers important chemical and neurological changes in your body that prepare you to fight or run away to safety to the best of your ability. It's these changes that give rise to the symptoms you experience during a panic attack.

HOW TO ELIMINATE PANIC ATTACK SYMPTOMS

The first thing to help you stop an attack, as you recognize its onset, is to understand that a panic attack cannot harm you and certainly can't kill you. This can help to relieve that feeling of dread, which has a knock-on effect in helping to calm you.

The second thing is to get control of your breathing again by breathing slowly, rhythmically and deeply to help re-balance your oxygen / carbon dioxide ratio. Make sure you breath using your diaphragm as well as your upper chest.

While doing this start to concentrate on external things rather than analysing your symptoms, which only makes the symptoms worse. Concentrate on buildings, people, trees, etc.

These techniques can help to reduce the time period and the symptoms of your attack, if not stop the attack completely. However, there are other things you can do to help stop an attack in its tracks, and also to prevent these panic / anxiety attacks occurring in the first place...