How do you know this feeling is panic attack? What does it feel like to have a panic attack?
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How do you know this feeling is panic attack? What does it feel like to have a panic attack?
Panic attacks can have varying degrees of intensity. Usually, you become convinced or at least very worried that you’re about to die. It’s like a chain reaction of anxiety. I’ve had panic attacks where I was crying and shaking. I’ve had panic attacks where I hyperventilated and thought I was having a lethal allergic reaction and my throat would close up and I would die any moment. My last panic attack, I didn’t hyperventilate but I thought I was having a heart attack and became afraid to move, so I called an ambulance and spent 12 hours at the ER. The thing is, the symptoms of a panic attack are very similar to the symptoms of a heart attack. And your throat might feel like it’s closing up. And you might feel faint, like the world is fading away. You wonder “what if this time I really am dying?”.
And yes, one can and does lose control over one’s emotions during an attack. If you could have a say in the matter, you probably wouldn’t be feeling terrified. If you had direct control over your emotions, panic attacks wouldn’t be an issue in the first place. The thing is, we don’t generally have much control over our emotions. We have control over our actions, but our emotions come and go. This is why it’s better to accept the anxiety rather than desperately try to fight it.
I would imagine that panic attacks are different for everyone. I’ve only ever had three, full-on panic attacks in my life. They’ve all been pretty similar though. I’ve never been able to find out exactly what triggers it. Although each time, I had been under severe amounts of stress, depression, and anxiety. When it first started, I felt like all my senses were magnified by at least 50%. I felt like I completely lost control over my body. Nothing has ever been more terrifying to me in my entire life. My lungs starting doing their own thing, inflating and deflating way too fast, but I was powerless to do anything about it. It felt like I couldn’t get enough air. My skin became extremely hot, but I started shivering violently. My hands and feet went numb. Literally numb. I couldn’t feel them at all. I still have never heard of this happening to anyone before. Both my legs cramped up, like I was having charlie horses. And lastly, I started crying, uncontrollably. Sobbing, gasping breaths. I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t take a deep breath. I couldn’t calm down. These three times were the most terrifying times I have ever experienced in my life. Why? Because I had zero control over my own body. My mind wasn’t functioning.