How To Control Panic Attacks

Panic attacks are a controllable illness, however, how to control panic attacks is not a simple case of taking a course of medication and feeling better. If treatment was easy then no on would ever suffer more than one panic attack and hence there would be no such thing as panic disorder. The key to understanding how to control panic attacks is to take the time to work out what triggers your panic attacks.

As each person is an individual and all panic attacks are different this is a road which each sufferer will need to take to find out how to control panic attacks successfully. A trigger for one sufferers panic attacks will probably not be an issue at all for other sufferers, so there is no shortcutting the process of finding your panic attack triggers.

During your course of psychotherapy you will learn how to change your reactions to the situations which are causing your panic attacks. This will obviously only be successful if you and your therapist have correctly identified the triggers for your panic attacks. Psychotherapy cannot be effective after just one treatment so a course of treatment will be needed, unfortunately this can get expensive.

If you think that you will not be able to afford the treatment it is worth discussing with a psychotherapist if they can work with you on a minimum number of sessions, where by you work on your own with targets and goals. Some people successfully treat panic attacks with self help, however, since panic attacks are so destructive it is best to get at least some guidance as to how to proceed.

The trigger is always the starting point when working out how to control panic attacks. This can only be done by analyzing previous panic attacks. It is best to have a note book and to carry it with you are all times, as you may remember something about the event and you will need to be able to add it to your description of the time immediately before the attack. The important things to consider are; where were you, who were you with, what were you doing, what was happening around you, how were you feeling?

Once you have worked out this environment of your panic attack you then need to think whether anything had changed immediately before the attack, did someone new enter the room, did someone around you say or do anything which surprised or scared you? Hopefully with analysis a pattern will start to emerge and you, possibly with the help of a specialist will be able to see how to control panic attacks by learning how to cope with the environment which triggers them.

Do not try to avoid situations where you panic attacks have occurred. This can be very damaging, because if you later get into a situation where you cannot get away you be even more scared, not just of whatever it is that causes you panic attacks, but you will also have the added fear that you will suffer a panic attack.

It is about learning to manage your emotions about the situation. Do not expect overnight results, it is about retraining and it take time. When understanding how to control panic attacks, you must realize that that it is a long term, on going process that you must incorporate into your life.

Once you have been diagnosed with panic attacks it is important to take positive action. Do not be off put by the costs. One good way to get more information and support is to contact support groups, either online or in your local area. These will be people who have been through similar experiences to you and who will be able to offer guidance and support. These people will be even more important if when you decide how to control panic attacks you do not use the services of a psychotherapist.