Getting Help for Panic Attacks

Living with the fear of having your next panic attack is no way to live. If you are a panic attack sufferer, you know all too well how they can dominate and disrupt your life. The four most common ways for you to get help for your panic attacks are medications, cognitive behavioral therapy, and self-treatment.

The first and unfortunately, most often practiced method of getting help for panic attacks is with medication. Diazepam, lorazepam, alprazolam, ond clonazepam are prescribed to the patient by a doctor with the patient being instructed to take the medication with the onset of a panic attack. The problem with these prescriptions is that there is a potential for abuse and they don't actually treat the cause of the panic attacks. Many times, doctors prefer to prescribe anti-depressants because they help the patient to relax but there are also many side effects with this method also.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is conducted by a professional therapist and consists of several sessions. The technique the therapist uses is to intentionally expose the patient to their panic attack triggers. They discuss what happens during the panic attack, the feelings this triggers, and what the patient fears most about the panic attack. The patient's worst symptoms are focused on and the feelings are induced at least five times until the patient becomes comfortable with these feelings. Hopefully, their feelings of fear and anxiety are reduced each time and they receive panic attack help.