Health & Medical Mental Health

Am I Having a Panic Attack?

Am I having a panic attack? If you are asking this question, you likely know this scenario.
You are fine...
things are just going along normally.
Then in an instant, everything collapses! Your heart begins racing, and every beat, every flutter, is magnified.
Breathing feels impossible and your knees turn to rubber.
Voices recede, the world around you becoming unreal.
There is only you and this terrible emergency.
You fear you are having a heart attack, or you are losing your mind, and the sense of impending doom is overwhelming.
A driving need to get immediate help overrides everything else and the words that echo in your mind are, "I am dying!" In my case, I was at a reunion dinner...
a happy occasion.
Just as the waiter began to bring our lovely food, things started to feel unreal and I felt myself detaching from my surroundings.
In the span of the next 5 horrific minutes I experienced all I just described.
We were on our way to the emergency room within 15 minutes.
I was certain we would not make it in time.
They injected me with a calming drug, and in a few minutes I was back to normal, relieved I was alive, but wondering how such a thing could happen to me.
Irrationally, I felt ashamed and humiliated for creating a "spectacle" at the dinner.
I didn't want anyone to know it was just a panic attack.
Just a panic attack! No one ever experiencing this nightmare would ever characterize it as just! They are utterly debilitating and terrifying.
The onset is sudden and if it is a true panic attack and not a heart attack, the episode will last anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes, and then recede.
Symptoms are: * Palpitations, or accelerated heart rate * Sweating * Trembling or shaking * Muscle tension * Sensations of shortness of breath or smothering * Feeling of choking * Chest pain or discomfort * Nausea or abdominal distress * Feeling dizzy, unsteady, lightheaded, or faint * Derealization (feelings of unreality) or depersonalization (being detached from oneself) * Fear of losing control or going insane * Fear of dying * Paresthesias (numbness or tingling sensations) * Chills or hot flashes * Weakness in the knees * Confusion * Blank mind * Sensing time going by very slowly * Feeling the need to escape So how do you know? Am I having a panic attack, or a physical crisis? In a panic attack the chest discomfort or pain is located over your heart.
If the pain sensations move to your chest center and/or arms, don't ease up within 10 minutes, or you experience more than one episode of vomiting or diarrhea, or you get relief and then the symptoms return, seek medical care immediately.
It is always wise to err on the side of caution! Don't despair.
There is help! There are ways to manage and ease this debilitating condition.
Understanding is power.
And do NOT be ashamed! Millions of people suffer from this with you.
You can find effective stop panic attack strategies to help you regain your normal life.
You can recover!

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