Panic attacks and anxiety symptoms are relatively easy to brush under the rug. People who experience panic or anxiety attacks might hide them out of a sense of shame or embarrassment or because they don’t believe that something non-physical is treatable. While panic and anxiety can indeed be invisible to outside observers, those experiencing them without seeking treatment or finding effective coping skills can see the effects of them ripple through their lives. An article this week in the Mumbai Mirror shines a light on some of the more extreme possibilities for how untreated panic attacks can affect the sufferer and others, and we thought it was with sharing to illustrate the importance of attending to panic and anxiety. Here’s an excerpt, and there’s a link below to the full article.
Earlier this week, a doctor at Sion hopsital ran away from a ward after suffering a panic attack. This resulted in a patient’s death. Experts suggest that anxiety has a cure.
Office meetings were never easy for Alok Sharma (name changed). The 36-year-old IT professional even found it hard to reach his son’s school for the child’s varied performances. The idea of an audience, of colleagues and fellow parents, left him dizzy and breathless. His persistent fear was that he would fall down. In the long run, all his personal and professional relationships were impacted. Nervousness seemed liked an apt description but it didn’t quite cover the extent of his turmoil. Since it was difficult to decipher the reasons behind his behaviour, Sharma finally consulted a psychologist.
“Such episodes of sudden fear and nervousness, which strike without warning and trigger severe physical reactions are symptoms of panic attacks. The person thinks he is losing control, having a heart attack or even dying. When these occurrences are repeated, it impacts one’s daily functioning and our quality of life,” says Dr Sonal Sheth, a psychologist at Bhatia Hospital who helped Sharma work through his anxiety. In her treatment, she used a combination of cognitive behavioural therapy, somatic therapy (observing body sensations), mindfulness (being non-reactive) and clinical hypnotherapy. The results, she says, have been remarkable.