Panic Disorder Counselling
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Panic Disorder Counselling
Panic disorder is characterized by recurrent panic attacks without an obvious trigger. It often leads to a persistent fear of experiencing another panic attack, creating a cycle of anxiety.
It's important to note that only a licensed therapist can recommend the best therapy for panic disorder.
Age: Panic episodes often begin in teenagers or young adults, but they can affect people of any age, including young children.
Gender: Panic disorder is more common in women, affecting them twice as often as men.
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Key Facts about panic disorder
🔹 A healthy diet and regular exercise can have a positive impact on panic disorder.
🔹 While panic disorder typically affects individuals between the ages of 20 and 40, it can also occur in children and the elderly.
🔹 Panic disorder is sometimes misdiagnosed as a thyroid condition.
🔹 Panic attacks usually last for 4-6 minutes on average.
🔹 Women are twice as likely as men to experience panic disorder.
Causes OF Panic Disorder
🔹 Panic disorder is primarily caused by fear and excessive worry.
🔹 It can also be triggered by hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
🔹 Major life changes like graduation, entering the workforce, marriage, or childbirth can contribute to panic disorder.
🔹 Severe stress or trauma, such as the loss of a loved one, divorce, or job loss, can also be associated with panic disorder.
Symptoms OF Panic Disorder
🔹 Sweating
🔹 Dizziness
🔹 Trembling
🔹 Chest or abdominal pain
🔹 Rapid heartbeat
🔹 Shortness of breath
🔹 Difficulty swallowing
🔹 Intense fear
Therapeutic Approaches in Panic Disorder Counselling
🔹 Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): This technique challenges and addresses unhelpful thoughts and beliefs.
🔹 Psychotherapy: Talk therapy is utilized to address and manage panic disorder.
🔹 Medication: Antidepressant medications are often prescribed to treat panic disorders.
🔹 Supportive Psychotherapy: This method involves the therapist providing general information and realistic hope for improvement to the client regarding the disorder.
Problems Arising from Panic Attacks
The most effective methods for managing panic attacks are psychotherapy, medication, or a combination of both. The duration of treatment depends on the severity of the condition and the individual’s response to therapy. Treatment options include:
- Talk Therapy (Psychotherapy): Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a common form of talk therapy. In CBT, you discuss your thoughts and feelings with a mental health therapist, such as a certified counselor or psychologist. This professional helps you identify the triggers of panic attacks and assists you in changing your thoughts, behaviors, and reactions. As you begin to respond differently to stimuli, panic attacks typically decrease and eventually subside.
- Antidepressants: Certain antidepressant medications can reduce the frequency and intensity of panic attacks. Healthcare professionals may prescribe serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), or tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) to manage panic disorder.
Problems Arising from Panic Attacks
Panic attacks are typically treatable, but many individuals avoid seeking help due to embarrassment. Untreated panic attacks and panic disorders can significantly impact your quality of life, potentially leading to:
- Anticipatory Anxiety: This involves extreme anxiety triggered by the fear of having another panic attack.
- Phobias: Panic attacks can lead to the development of phobias, which are intense, irrational fears of specific objects or situations. Examples include claustrophobia (fear of small spaces) and acrophobia (fear of heights).
- Agoraphobia: Approximately two-thirds of individuals with panic disorder also experience agoraphobia. This anxiety disorder causes a fear of being in places or situations where a panic attack might occur, sometimes to the extent that leaving the house becomes impossible.
Preventing Panic Attacks
While undergoing panic disorder counselling, your online therapist can help you identify the triggers of panic attacks and develop coping strategies. Additionally, you can reduce the likelihood of experiencing a panic attack by:
- Reducing Caffeine Intake
- Engaging in Regular Exercise
- Maintaining a Balanced Diet
- Stress Management
- Consulting Your Doctor Before Using Herbal Supplements or Over-the-Counter Drugs
When to Start Panic Disorder Counselling?
In some cases, panic attack symptoms may mimic physical problems like a heart attack. Seek immediate medical attention if you experience difficulty breathing, chest pain, or loss of consciousness.
You should consider panic disorder counselling if you:
- Experience daily, life-interfering chronic anxiety.
- Struggle with focus and concentration.
- Feel extreme restlessness or agitation.
- Develop agoraphobia, making you fearful of leaving your home.
- Have panic attack symptoms lasting more than 15 minutes.
- Encounter sleep problems.
Panic Disorder Counselling Near Me?
urbancounsellor.com offers access to the best online therapists for panic disorder therapy. Find your ideal match.
Best Psychologists For Counselling For Panic Disorder
Among our certified psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, and mental health professionals who provide online counselling. Explore options such as relationship counselling, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and online therapy for anxiety and depression. Consult the best online psychologist now.
Frequently Asked Questions
Although the exact origin of panic attacks is unknown, but there are important elements to it which have been found to be important including heredity, psychological issues, extreme stress, or having a susceptibility to stress. The difference between predicted and unexpected panic attacks is that the former usually have a known cause, such as crowds, flying, or exams, while the latter can appear to occur for no apparent reason. So usually it happens with a trigger, but it can also happen without one.
The main characteristics are recurring, intense anxiety (panic) which are not limited to one situation. A person may suddenly experience palpitations, chest discomfort, feeling of choking, dizziness, and there is also nearly always a secondary fear of dying, losing control, or going insane. Fear of being alone or going somewhere in public is brought on by frequent and unpredictable panic attacks. A panic episode is frequently followed by a lingering anxiety of having another attack.
Certain techniques have been found to be effective to calm oneself during a panic attack such as deep breathing exercises, keeping assuring oneself that this will pass, try to focus on something else, try a grounding exercise, like the 5-4-3-2-1 This technique uses the five senses to engage a person experiencing a panic attack in the present moment.
Between the ages of 15 and 19, panic attacks(onset) are most frequently experienced by people.
The symptoms of a panic attack appear suddenly, peaking in intensity within 10 minutes. Usually, the episode subsides in 20 to 30 minutes, rarely lasting longer than an hour.
When comparing panic attacks usually happen with a trigger, but they can also happen without one, symptoms frequently strike without warning. Disruptive symptoms that could also include a detachment to reality are present and usually disappear after a few minutes. On the other hand, attacks of anxiety are a reaction to perceived stressors or threats, the symptoms can linger for longer periods of time and range in severity from mild to severe. Usually the sensations of anxiety build-up over time.