Can someone with Generalized Anxiety Disorder have Pannic Attack?
369157
I have had Anxiety Disorder, chronic Depression for over 25 years.  I started having panic attacks in the 90's.  The only thing we found that to control the panic attacks are benzodiazipines.  Panic Disorder can be disabling. \n\nIf you have ever had an anxiety attack, that's a nightmare; however, a panic attack . . . wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.  I would wake up at night in the middle of a panic attack.  They are Hell on earth.
851590
A lot of the symptoms do sound like reflux/gerd. I'm not sure what is going on with your arm, but if you're an anxious person, you could be causing it by the power of suggestion. Reflux/gerd needs to be watched because the stomach acid over a long time can cause a pre-cancerous condition. I know that's not going to help your anxiety. Just have a doctor check you every year and get an endoscopy every 5 years if it really is reflux or gerd.
449978
Obviously this is a very important question and it \ndeserves the best possible answer.  There are usually\nsome variations among the symptoms; and among the\nreasons, if any can be identified.  Panic attacks can\nbe treated by a wide variety of meds, sometimes even \nmost successfully as a "side effect" of a certain med.\nSo if a sufferer wants the best chance of relief\nas soon as possible, and wants to avoid multiple trials\nof different drugs which aren't helpful, the individual\naspects of the attacks should be discussed with a\npsychiatrist who is clinically skilled and caring.\nAre such doctors hard to find?  Yes, they can be.\nDon't start by listings in a phone book.  Ask other\nhealth professionals or people who have had similar\nproblems, as long as you trust them and can respect\ntheir opinions.  Your question is much too general\nto answer without good medical help.  And even though\nfinding that may be a job in itself, it's worth \nthe effort.
686049
You may have a more serious anxiety problem. Speak to your doctor about it.
29286
It does sound like an anxiety disorder, particulary panic disorder. Not knowing more about you, though, it makes it difficult to give a specific answer. \n\nThere is effective treatment for this disorder, so you should talk with your physician and/or a psychologist or psychiatrist. You can feel a lot better after treatment. Read about it:\n\nhttp://www.nimh.nih.gov/HealthInformation/panicmenu.cfm\n\nhttp://www.webmd.com/content/article/60/67106?z=2951_00000_0000_rl_01
674636
My best girlfriend has this.She can't come to parties or any gatherings because of it.She has been seeing a psycologist and it helps her.Here is more info if you need it. \n\nWhat is social anxiety disorder?\n\nSocial anxiety disorder, also called social phobia, is a psychological condition that causes an overwhelming fear of social situations that require interacting with or performing in front of others. It is different than being shy, introverted, or experiencing the normal anxiety before public speaking—the fear is that you will somehow embarrass yourself with what you say or do in public. Social anxiety disorder causes relentless fear, often beginning days or weeks before an event, and often triggers physical symptoms such as blushing, rapid heartbeat, and difficulty concentrating. Social anxiety disorder significantly impacts a person's daily life. It may even cause withdrawal from social activities and missed work or school. \n\nWhat causes social anxiety disorder?\nAlthough the exact cause of social anxiety is not known, it may run in families either as a genetic factor or as a learned response developed after experiencing a particularly humiliating situation.\n\nWhat are the symptoms of social anxiety disorder?\nSocial anxiety disorder has both emotional and physical symptoms. Emotionally, you may feel anxious, sad, irritable, and easily startled in anticipation of or during a social event. You may worry excessively or fear something bad is going to happen. This anxiety can cause physical symptoms, such as blushing, sweating, shakiness, rapid heartbeat, and difficulty concentrating.\n\nHow is social anxiety disorder diagnosed?\nSocial anxiety disorder is diagnosed based on your history of symptoms, a physical exam, and a mental health assessment, which involves an evaluation of psychological symptoms.\n\nBlood or urine tests may also be done to rule out other medical conditions that can cause similar symptoms (such as an overactive thyroid).\n\nHow is social anxiety disorder treated?\nTreatment of social anxiety disorder includes professional counseling and sometimes medications (such as antidepressants), depending on the degree to which your symptoms are impacting your daily life. Social anxiety disorder can be generalized—meaning you fear most social situations—or your fears may be limited to one or a few social situations. The more social fears you have, the more debilitating the condition, and the more difficult it can be to treat.\n\nSubstance abuse problems or depression often accompanies social anxiety disorder. When other psychological conditions occur with social anxiety disorder, additional treatment is needed for those conditions.
226044
An anxiety disorder manifesting with recurrent anxiety. It can be so serious that the anxiety and fear take over the life of the affected person.\n\nThere is no known single cause.
432022
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, panic disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by unexpected and recurring panic attacks, also called anxiety attacks. Panic attacks are episodes of intense terror or fear which strike suddenly and without warning. It is important to note that if you have experienced a panic attack, this does not necessarily mean that you have or will develop panic disorder. Many people have experienced singular attacks without recurrence, and do not have panic disorder.\n\nref: http://www.helpguide.org/mental/panic_disorder_anxiety_attack_symptom_treatment.htm
163531
With any anxiety the important thing to remember is that medications will only aleviate the symptoms, but the cause will still be there. Regardless of whether you decide to use medications or not, you must also consider a means of psychotherapy. \n\na) With panic attacks and social phobia I suggest therapies that are deep and personal (such as cognitive therapy, psychoanalysis or humanistic psychotherapies). As a psychologist I prefer to use a mixture of all these therapies depending on what the client needs at a time. You need to discover the cause of your anxiety. That doesn't simply mean "what caused it and what experiences you had in your childhood etc" as many people think, although that is sometimes helpful. You have to realise the thought patterns that are causing the problem for you RIGHT NOW. And the underlying experiences, memories, wishes, concerns that cause those thought patterns. It won't be an overnight solution but trust me, you can make it happen. I have done it myself and have helped many others do it.\n\nb)What is the severity of your anxiety? If your anxiety is so severe that it causes you to completely lose grip of your feelings and behavior then I suggest you consider using medications, only as a temporary means of assisting you in the process of psychotherapy, not as a permanent solution on its own. Also with severe anxieties having the support and care of a therapiest you trust is very important. If you are with a therapist that you do not feel that strong personal bond with, try other therapists. You may need to change a few therapists until you find the right one for you. Whatever you do, do not give up because you have had a few unsuccessful experiences with different therapists.\n\nOne last thing that I strongly recommend is natural therapies. Again not as a solution on their own, but as a part of the therapeutic process. In particular try homeopathy and chiropractic. Your body and mind are so closely linked that curing one without the other is meaningless.
1112230
I have had panic attacks also and I have an anxiety disorder.  I think that if you work on it that you can make it completely go away.  I am getting over mine and I have the same problem that you have where it is less and less but not completely gone.  \n\nYou could try medication and then eventually stop.  That might be just the thing you need to make it completely stop.
131611
It really depends on the person and why they are having them. I have a panic disorder and Post traumatic stress disorder so it is a serious medical condition for me. I need xanax to get through the day sometimes to keep me from having a panic attack like crazy. For that person they feel like they are going crazy and they are in constant pain. It makes me not be able to breathe and my heart races. I usually have to lie down and am afraid of everything. It is very serious for some. But some people have a better control over it.
1048152
About 4 years ago I began experiencing that feeling quite a bit, I finally began to suffer with anxiety attacks and decided to seek help.  I was diagnosed with depression, mild agoraphobia, social anxiety disorder with panic attacks.  With the help of a mild anti-depressant, a great therapist(more like a friend really), my faith and my family, I am doing much much better.  It doesn't hurt to find someone you trust who is knowledgeable in this area and talk about it.  It takes alot of courage for you to realize you might have a problem and want to know what it is and how to fix it.  Good grace to you!
980563
Well it can affect your relationship by basically keeping you away from those who care for you. Generally speaking; when one is suffering an anxiety attack they want to be along. Closing out others isn't deliberate action; but a way of cooping with the attack. Its very much so a challenge to be around others when you may be sweating, your palms are wet, shortage of breath, crazy thoughts of panic, etc. I've had anxiety attacks and people thought I was on drugs. Well that's a hard pill to swallow. However; there was a time I had someone in my corner when I had an attack and I was the better person with them right there with me.
453976
Why can't you ask a psychologist to diagnose you... are you under age and your parents don't want to (go see the school counselor)? Is there no insurance or an issue with your insurance company in this regard? Or does the mere thought turn your anxiety up through the roof (this one is a strong indicator for the first condition I mention below)?\n\nAnyway...\n\nLosing concentration in a social situation, and having difficulty conversing with others, could be any number of things.\n\nSocial Anxiety/agoraphobia is the most likely cause, but it takes a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist to do any diagnosis, so don't take what I'm saying as one. Anyway, agoraphobia is treated with medication and therapy. It can also contribute to difficulty concentrating at school and in other stressful situations, and can be a quite serious condition.\nYou might have attention deficit...but that by itself usually does not make someone a "social recluse"...quite the opposite!\nIt probably isn't Asperger's (although like I said before, I'm not diagnosing you, here). In the autistic spectrum, the person does not read social cues from others or learn social rules effectively. They also usually don't show their own emotions with the same set of body language as everyone else. While people with autistic-spectrum disorders, especially the higher-intelligence ones, feel a great deal of anxiety in social situations, it's more a foot-in-mouth problem rather than clamming up, especially for Aspergers. This is a generalization, but I'm trying to summarize this in less than half a page..lol.\n\nAnyway, the ONLY way to really identify your exact issue and needs is to get a diagnosis, and treatment through couselling (and medication if absolutely necessary).
786460
Hi, I am sorry and know how you feel! I have suffered panic attacks for 12 years! There should be a number that's listed if you go onto the Internet and type panic helpline for your area you will get it, if you are diagnosed then you should discuss what you can take for them, I have xanax which I take if I feel one coming on and it makes me feel much more at ease just knowing I have them, I have fought extremely hard to work with one when I get it, and it's not easy but I keep trying, if you have one can you call a friend do you live with someone?? is there someone close you have told that you could call when an attack happens? Lie down take in deep breaths put on a fan it helps me as I get very hot when I have one. I wish I could help more! please do get something from the doctor it's a great comfort. Take care
1009067
Most sufferers of panic attacks report a fear of dying, "going crazy", or losing control of emotions or behavior. These feelings generally provoke a strong urge to escape or flee the place where the attack began ("fight or flight" reaction) and, when associated with chest pain or shortness of breath, a feeling of impending doom and/or tunnel vision, frequently result in the sufferer seeking medical attention.\n\nThe panic attack is distinguished from other forms of anxiety by its intensity and its sudden, episodic nature. Panic attacks are often experienced by sufferers of anxiety disorders and other psychological conditions involving anxiety, though panic attacks are not always indicative of a mental disorder, nor are they uncommon. Up to 10 percent of otherwise healthy people experience an isolated panic attack per year, and 1 in 60 people in the U.S. will suffer from a panic disorder at some point in their lifetime.\n\nPeople with phobias will often experience panic attacks as a direct result of exposure to their trigger. These panic attacks are usually short-lived and self-limiting, as they will subside once the trigger no longer present.\n\nIn conditions of chronic anxiety, one panic attack can roll into another, leading to nervous exhaustion over a period of days.\n[edit]\n\nSymptoms\n\nThe symptoms of a panic attack appear suddenly, without any apparent cause. They may include:\n\n    * Racing or pounding heartbeat or palpitations\n    * Sweating\n    * Chest pain/PVCs\n    * Dizziness, lightheadedness, nausea\n    * Difficulty breathing (dyspnea)\n    * Tingling or numbness in the hands, face, feet or mouth\n    * A sudden feeling that everything around the person represents a threat. This can cause a person to either behave extremely defensively (perhaps even assuming the fetal position), or to become enraged and lash out violently.\n    * The loss of the ability to react logically to oncoming stimuli, and the loss of cognitive ability in general. One suffering from a panic attack will often only feel the attack and will be unable to assess why they are feeling the attack or what they can do to stop the sensation.\n    * Flushed face and chest\n    * Chills\n    * Dream-like sensation or perceptual distortion (derealization)\n    * Dissociation, or the perception that one is not connected to the body or is disconnected from space and time (depersonalization)\n    * Terror, or a sense that something unimaginably horrible is about to occur and one is powerless to prevent it\n    * Vomiting\n    * Tunnel vision\n    * Fear of losing control and doing something embarrassing or going crazy\n    * Fear of dying\n    * Feeling of impending doom\n    * Trembling or "shivering"\n    * Crying\n    * Heightened senses\n    * Loud internal dialogue\n    * Exhaustion\n    * Vertigo\n\nA panic attack typically lasts from 2 to 8 minutes. More severe panic attacks may form a series of episodes waxing and waning every few minutes, only to be ended by physical exhaustion and sleep.\n\nThe various symptoms of a panic attack can be understood as follows. First, there is the sudden onset of fear with little or no provoking stimulus. This leads to a release of adrenaline (epinephrine) which brings about the so-called fight-or-flight response where the person's body prepares for major physical activity. This leads to an increased heart rate (tachycardia), rapid breathing (hyperventilation), and sweating (which increases grip and aids heat loss). Because strenuous activity rarely ensues, the hyperventilation leads to a drop in carbon dioxide levels in the lungs and then in the blood. This leads to shifts in blood pH which can in turn lead to many other symptoms, such as tingling or numbness, dizziness, and lightheadedness. It is also possible for the person experiencing such an attack to feel as though they are unable to catch their breath, and they begin to take deeper breaths, which also acts to decrease c
410210
I also suffer with some of the same problems as you.Don't be afraid to go to the specialist. Let him know about your anxiety disorder. If you are still frightened,ask a close friend to go with you to the doctors. It is important to make an appointment as soon as you can, and you will get all the answers from the doctors. Good luck!