Panic Attacks

[MayaH]

Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone experiences panic attacks as just disassociation/detachment, dizziness, hyperventilation and shaking? The majority of my panic attacks are like this and I seem to get them about once every two weeks which is a massive improvement because I was having them every other day at one stage. I quite often have them at work and sometimes they come out of nowhere and occasionally I can pre-empt them with how anxious I've been feeling for the rest of the day. I'm always able to carry on with work afterwards because I've had so many panic attacks now that I'm just sued to them but I always feel really weak and tired afterwards which is disconcerting. They can vary in intensity and time as well so sometimes they can be really intense lasting about five minutes and other times less bad but lasting for 10 minutes - and occasionally I get intense panci attacks lasting ten minutes but these are the exception.

I had one panic attack just over a year ago where the shaking, hyperventilation and detachment were so bad that the friend I was with called a paramedic at my university to check me over. They didn't actually do anything, just stayed there while my friend held me and got me water. They told me it was no more than a panic attack and thankfully I haven't had any as bad as this since then.

Anyone had any experience of any of this?

M

[unspoken]

Hi - I was told by a psychologist recently that unless you fear you're imminently dying, it's not technically a panic attack but "extreme anxiety". I'm not sure I agree with that judgement. It feels like an attack to me because I feel completely out of control and unable to stop it. I hyperventilate, cry and shake and the hyperventilation causes me to feel dizzy and like my head is fuzzy. I think it's caused by a massive rush of adrenaline or something. The only way to stop it is to try to focus on counting while I breathe in, trying to reach a higher number each time. Then afterwards I feel so drained and exhausted. Having something to eat afterwards really helps me to feel stronger. I have been having attacks like this since I was about 8 years old. I fear them because I hate the embarrassment of them. I think the frequency of them has reduced since I've been on Sertraline, but it does still happen.

Have you spoken to your GP about this? Can you look into getting counselling? It might help to talk through with a counsellor the kind of thoughts and experiences that trigger the panic.

[Seffie]

I think there are so called classic panic attacks that follow a kind of pattern but to be honest anytime I get a range of symptoms together that leaves me fearful - such as hyperventilation, palpitations, shaking, dizziness - to me that all counts as a panic attack. If I was just having palpitations and they were unpleasant and scary but I coped with them ok then that would just be anxiety related symptoms but not really a panic attack.
Yours sound like classic panic attacks to me, sounds like you're learning to cope with them though, are you getting any kind of treatment for them?

[ana]

My panic attacks mainly manifest as depersonalisation and the feeling of detachment from reality. As scary as it is, I know that it's just anxiety. I often get shaky, too. It's important to try and lower your anxiety levels as soon as you notice them going up because that way you can prevent yourself from going into full blown panic mode.

[Suziewuzie]

This is exactly how my panic attacks manifest. After the depersonalisation has passed (normally about 20 to 30 minutes) I feel very shaky and weak. It's very scary and I always feel like I need to 'get out' of wherever I am.
Sometimes for me the depersonalisation can last, on a milder level, for a few days.
Sometimes certain lighting can cause mine, which is why I think I often have them in supermarkets or at work x