Treatments For Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Anxiety is a serious medical problem. Panic attacks, which are one of the effects of Anxiety disorder, must be treated or they will often become much worse. It is not uncommon for anxiety attacks to spin out of control until they have taken over a person's life. Getting help to stop panic attacks is essential, so that they are not allowed to worsen.
With any medical condition, the right treatment will often depend on the patient. Treatment must be chosen based on what the patient and his or her doctor both feel is right. Even if one of the below approaches fails, there will be another that will work for you.
Feeling good about the treatment that you choose is a very important part of your success, and it will help you to deal with anxiety the best way possible.
Listed below are the primary options for anxiety treatment.
Treatment for Anti-Anxiety Using Drugs
Quite a few different drugs are prescribed for the treatment of anxiety. These drugs are most often ones that are made especially for anxiety, and include Klonopin, Ativan, and Valium. Normally, the prescribed dosage is "as needed", but sometimes your doctor will have you take a daily dosage for mild anxiety problems. Sometimes, anti-depressants are prescribed for anxiety problems because they can have a positive effect on stress levels, but such drugs were not made for this purpose.
While drug-based anxiety treatments can be helpful there are two major drawbacks. Firstly, drug treatments address the symptoms of anxiety but not the root causes of anxiety. Secondly, there is a high risk of becoming dependant on (addicted to) some commonly-prescribed anti-anxiety drugs.
Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy for Anxiety
Hypnosis is a completely natural and for many, highly effective option for treating anxiety. Hypnotherapy combats anxiety by inducing deep relaxation, allowing underlying causes to be explored and responses to be retrained through hypnotic suggestion.
Unfortunately, anxiety tends to prevent hypnosis from working in many cases. Anxiety sufferers have a hard time allowing themselves to be "put under", due to the fear of losing control. Hypnotherapy does not tend to have a high success level in dealing with panic attacks. Hypnotherapy will usually not be enough to combat panic attacks unless it is accompanied by another aggressive method of therapy, such as CBT, aimed at eliminating the panic attacks.
Some patients who have anxiety which is not accompanied by panic attacks find that self-hypnosis can be a helpful method of reducing anxiety. Self-hypnosis is not considered a valid treatment option for panic attacks.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is used in the treatment of anxiety and a number of other conditions. CBT works by seeking out improper thought patterns and retraining them. Since the way that a person views a situation is altered, it is possible to also alter their reaction to it.
While CBT is a highly effective way to treat anxiety and panic attacks for many people, it does take time. Usually, the patient will need to commit to brain exercises, done on a schedule. If the patient is willing to put forth the effort, however, this is a way to stop anxiety and panic attacks for good.
About 3 million people in America alone have suffered from panic attacks. Anxiety and panic attacksare not well understood by modern medicine. Get more information on methods to stop panic and anxiety and live panic free.