Although panic attacks commonly happen during the day, some people also experience the at night. Waking up and discovering you're having a panic attack can be an overwhelming and scary experience, and the fact that you're probably still groggy and trying to ‘come round' from sleep, can make you feel out of control and cause you to panic even more.
Some people experience seemingly random panic attacks and can't entirely pinpoint the cause. When you overcome panic attacks, you get your life back. Even if you do have panic attacks, you and your doctor have a great shot at beating them. Think about it, the human response to a threat or imminent danger (imagine real danger — you're being chased by a bear or attacked by bees), in those moments, our immediate and instinctive reaction is to panic.
Even in the most severe panic attacks, your heart rate looks very much like it does under moderate exercise. The fact of the matter is that this phobia likely developed because the person experienced a panic attack related to another matter that was deeply seated in their subconscious.
Some people with panic disorder may be more anxious in general and may overbreathe in other situations, whereas other people with panic disorder only tend to overbreathe in association with certain situations. Panic attacks are not a medical emergency although they often feel like one.
A panic attack comes on suddenly, bringing with it short-lived disabling anxiety, fear or discomfort. This can help you come back to your body and control your breathing. But, we still need a way to handle situation-induced panic attacks (like I did with my agoraphobia - the fear of public places) or more importantly,
techniques to stop panic attacks as they are occurring.
Breathing will slow down again, blood pressure will return to normal, the sweat response will calm down, and clear thought will return. Search our directory of ADAA mental health professional members who specialize in anxiety, depression and co-occurring disorders.