Panic attacks and anxiety attacks are basically the same thing, and they are on the rise. Nobody knows why there are on the increase but our current stressful lives seem to be a big factor. But the fact remains they are causing more and more people no end of problems.
Would you recognise a panic attack if you had one? That’s a difficult question to answer as the symptoms are quite wide ranging and can vary from mild to the downright frightening. You may just feel a bit of a hot sweat. But you may also feel like your heart is bursting out of your chest.
I’m sure if you were having the latter symptoms you would be aware right now that you are having panic attacks and need help to stop them. But you may be suffering one of the many lesser symptoms and not really realising that you are having some form of anxiety attack. These mild symptoms could well be warning signs of something worse to come.
The first (bad) panic attack my wife suffered was actually while she was driving. Needless to say it wasn’t just the actual anxiety attack that frightened her but the fact she could have crashed and killed herself and others. This scenario just doesn’t bear thinking about.
If you’ve been having a few strange moments lately, maybe even experiencing one or more of the following… Difficulty sleeping, a bit on edge or anxious, can’t concentrate, constantly irritated or fidgeting a lot. Any of these small signs could be a forewarning that something else is about to hit you.
Before you actually get into a panic about these symptoms let me assure you there are many things that can cause these symptoms. And none of them are anything to worry about. Too much caffeine can stop you sleeping. Uncomfortable clothing can cause you to fidget.
But before we dismiss everything it’s still safer to be sure you aren’t a panic attack victim. Taking an anxiety symptoms test can give you a much clearer idea of your risk. You simply tick a few yes or no boxes and total your score at the end.
Then you can make the choice to take further action or not. Take the anxiety symptoms test here.