It is usually difficult to assist an individual who is having a panic attack. For those people who have never experienced it themselves, a panic attack is really a strange and mysterious event that befalls their loved ones that makes you feel helpless and confused.
Why is this individual which you communicate with on an everyday basis all of the sudden acting so strange? That is, you may think this in case you even knew that your husband or wife is actually experiencing an attack. In a lot of cases those who suffer from an anxiety or stress and panic attack doesn't even show any external symptoms but hide away what they are feeling inside from the external world.
Then, when they feel that they can trust you with it, they might start discussing what they are experiencing when they're having an attack, or discuss their attacks to you. There is still a big sense of disgrace associated with the problem and a great deal of people who suffer from stress and panic and anxiety hide it away, as if admitting to some weakness.
Sometimes the patient may tell you that he is suffering from a panic attack right now, at that moment. What can you do to aid?
The really first thing to do isn't to question whether what they're feeling is real. To them, their signs or symptoms and feelings are genuine and they might manifest physical symptoms for instance shortness of breath, trembling and shaking, excessive sweating and muscle tension.
The biggest issue with panic attacks is that the symptoms are really similar to other medical conditions. Heart palpitations and sweating can be an indication of an imminent heart attack. In a whole lot of instances the panic sufferer is also convinced that THIS time round what he or she is suffering from is not a stress and panic attack, but really a fully-fledged heart attack or something else that's physical or medically related.
The irony of the matter is that irrespective of whether the person is experiencing a stress and panic attack or whether or not he may well be in the throes of an imminent heart attack, the approach should be the same.
1. Keep him calm (and stay calm yourself)! Make the person comfortable, let them sit down or lie down, whatever makes them really feel comfortable.
2. If you are unsure regardless of whether this is often a panic attack or something worse, rather call for medical aid. It can be much better to be safe than sorry.
3. Help the person control their breathing. This would be a good thing to do whether you are dealing with a panic attack, an asthma attack or a heart attack. Assist the individual take some deep breaths in while counting on breathing in, then count for the exact same amount of breaths out. Do not let the person breathe in too deeply since it might lead to hyperventilation again. Just calm, steady breaths on the count of three in and 3 out.
4. Ask the individual if he has any medication that he takes in these situations. He may have medication to help him through the attack and you can possibly just aid him obtain it.
5. Just be there for the individual. In most cases, they just want to know that you are there. Do not belittle their fears, do not tell them not to worry – just stay quiet, hold them (if they want to be held) and stay with them until they come out of the attack.
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It might be worth while after the attack is over to talk to the other person about possible avenues for investigating remedies for panic attacks. Sometimes they might not want to listen to you, don't push it, but if they are receptive to it, let them know that there are ways to cure panic attacks . A discussion of the various treatments for panic attacks can be found on http://www.articlesbase.com/diseases-and-conditions-articles/treatment-of-panic-attacks-options-for-treatment-of-panic-attacks-1972593.html