What happens after the first panic attack marks a before and after in someone’s life. These terrifying experiences that seem to come out of nowhere are experienced with a wide range of physical symptoms.
It is common for the person with it to have a clear feeling that he or she is about to die, that his heart will collapse at any time.
- Anyone who has never experienced a panic attack can have brain-hearted ideas about these conditions.
- So it’s common to think that these realities only affect insecure and even fearful people.
In addition, it is also common to assume that attacks occur in very specific situations where you feel an uncontrollable fear, such as speaking in public, getting on an elevator or a plane, etc.
Now, one thing to understand about panic attacks is that they can occur at any time and without a specific trigger.
Some people wake up in the middle of the night with an alarming sense of panic, firmly believing that they are about to have a myocardial infarction; there are also those who suffer for the first time talking on the phone, having dinner with friends or being in the supermarket.
There is also another important aspect that we need to understand: each of us can have a panic attack. These experiences do not depend on personality, age, or circumstances.
Anxiety is something that suffers from a large part of the population and, therefore, it is advisable to know what is going on and what we should do when we live these episodes for the first time.
“The weight of anxiety is greater than the damage it causes” – Daniel Defoe-
We all have many techniques and resources at our disposal to manage anxiety, however, there is one fact that often fails: information.
We make mistakes in recognizing the symptoms and evidence that anxiety leaves in our body and mind; we don’t know the consequences and how it manifests itself when the limit is reached.
This means, for example, that a lot of people don’t know what a panic attack is, somehow, in our ideology, it’s something that only happens to others or an experience we’ve seen before on TELEVISION, and that people solve by breathing in a paper bag.
Therefore, it is necessary to have more data, reliable information and a certain culture of psychological disorders in order to intervene as quickly as possible.
Let’s see what happens after the first panic attack
When a person experiences a panic attack for the first time, fear increases exponentially because they do not understand what is happening, so anxiety is triggered by ignorance and uncertainty.
Tachycardia, shortness of breath, dizziness, muscle tension? It’s common to go to the ER thinking it’s a heart attack, but when doctors make the diagnosis, there are those who are even more confused.
Hearing that what you just suffered has a mental er than physical origin sometimes causes riots/denials. The experience is so physical that many people do not hesitate to seek a second opinion, to perform tests and exams.
On average, it is common for a person to receive anxiolytics for a limited time and to treat weeding.
Panic attacks are a product of development, even if they begin to manifest abruptly, are the physical trigger of an unfavorable emotional state maintained over time.
Thus, and on average, those who end up suffering these experiences have accumulated a heavy burden of anxiety for many months or even years.
What happens after the first panic attack is that secondary anxiety appears. It is in this state that an intense fear of suffering another attack is developing again; these intense symptoms and loss of control terrify us.
All this leads us to feed fear, generating a vicious cycle that further aggravates this situation.
Another important aspect after the first panic attack is the search for help, there comes a time when the person is aware of his impotence.
Sooner or later he realizes that he is losing control of his life, the anguish of suffering another attack on the spot and in the most unexpected circumstances leads them to take the first step to deal with the situation.
However, this is not always the case. Some people take yoga classes and others think relaxation and meditation techniques will help them reduce these situations, however, they don’t always work.
This is not because anxiety is a complex and illusory enemy long attached to the patient’s life, so more specialized, concrete strategies are needed and that only specialists can propose.
Psychological therapy is the only way that will help reduce panic attacks and the emotional reality behind these manifestations. Gradually, with our commitment, we will regain control to shape a fuller and more fulfilling life.