Africa Melane spoke to clinical psychologist at Psych Central Christel Roets about how to identify, understand and manage panic attacks.

There are so many factors in our daily lives that can cause feelings of anxiety, and for some these feelings become so severe that they cause panic attacks.

Africa Melane spoke to clinical psychologist at Psych Central Christel Roets about how to identify, understand and manage panic attacks.

A panic attack can be defined as sudden, unreasonable feelings of fear that cause physical symptoms such as a raised heart rate or shortness of breath.

Often the person who experiences the panic attack won’t see it coming, they will just feel a sense of anxiety or loss of control - which trigger the attack.

Panic attacks can vary in severity, with some just feeling a raised heartrate and sense of anxiety, while others find themselves completely debilitated by it.

A lot of people end up at the hospital because they think that they’re having a heart attack or a stroke.

Christel Roets, clinical psychologist at Psych Central

In order to prevent or manage panic attacks, it’s important to be aware of your thoughts, your senses and your triggers.

Finding the source of the anxiety can help prevent that feeling of being completely overwhelmed. If you are in a situation that causes anxiety, engaging your senses to ground yourself can prevent you from falling into an anxiety loop, according to Roets.

In addition to this, taking care of your general wellbeing through diet, exercise, and breathing exercises can help with managing feelings of panic.

To find out more, listen to the full audio below.

This article first appeared on 702 : How to manage a panic attack


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