Panic Attacks

What are panic attacks?

Panic attacks are extremely frightening and they seem to come out of the blue. They are periods of intense fear, apprehension or anxiety.

The effects of an attack vary.  Many people who experience a panic attack fear they are having a heart attack or a nervous breakdown.   Sufferers of panic attacks often report:

•     a fear of dying or of “going crazy” or of losing control of themselves
•     heart racing, palpitations
•     feeling faint, dizzy, unsteady
•     feeling sick,
•     a numb sensation throughout their body
•     heavy breathing, hyperventilation
•     losing control of themselves
•     trembling
•     unreal, distant feeling

These feelings may provoke a strong urge to flee the place where the attack began.

Panic attacks are distinguished from other forms of anxiety because of their intensity and their sudden, episodic nature. The number of panic attacks that someone has will vary depending on the severity of his or her condition.  Some people may have one or two attacks each month, whilst others may have several attacks a week.

TESTIMONIALS

Testimonial for CBT and EMDR for a re-occurrence of panic attacks

Due to a combination of life events, and restrictive living due to the Pandemic, I unfortunately experienced a relapse in my panic and anxiety disorder.

I did not hesitate to contact Sarah, who once again was able to help me.

We explored what was currently maintaining my panic disorder and heightened anxiety.  We then processed some deep-rooted traumatic memories that were also contributing to the maintenance of my panic and anxiety. With a combination of talking, and lots of engaging exercises in order to not only compliment the fantastic work we had done in the my previous sessions, (when first diagnosed), but we went even further and explored new techniques and tools to help me normalise my feelings and thoughts, train myself to control activating the CAS – if you know, you know! – and turn a corner into believing that I truly do have the ability to control my thinking patterns, beliefs and behaviours which have been fuelling my problems.

(Female age 34, virtual sessions)

CBT for panic attacks, generalised anxiety and health anxiety

I have suffered with generalised anxiety disorder and health anxiety for most of my life. I came to Sarah for help as things got progressively worse and I was experiencing intense anxiety. I would wake up numerous times throughout the night with my body contracting and feeling incredibly panicky.  My guess is that these were panic attacks.  I was up night after night experiencing these attacks over and over again and would sit there on the sofa feeling very frightened and wondering what was happening to me, not having a clue how to stop or handle these sensations and feelings.  It was a very frightening and distressing experience.

Sarah taught me how to manage my panic symptoms and very quickly the panic attacks soon stopped.  I cannot tell you how relieved and grateful to Sarah I am to be free of the panic attacks.  I gradually started to sleep better too.

After that, we concentrated on helping me with my generalised anxiety and health anxiety. I can certainly say that CBT and working with Sarah has helped me enormously.  I no longer have generalised anxiety disorder and health anxiety. Having suffered for so long with a variety of anxiety symptoms, it is wonderful to be able to manage my anxiety really well. Sarah is always professional, trustworthy and an easy person to talk to.  Thank you, Sarah, for your expertise.

(Female, aged 51, virtual sessions, Nov 2020)

CBT for the treatment of panic attacks and long term generalised anxiety

Since my early twenties I had experienced periods of heightened anxiety and panic attacks. The first panic attack was absolutely terrifying. I did the old head in the sand technique. From time to time I would read a self-help book or watch a self-help DVD. I found that it was one thing reading something but it was another thing putting it into practice. 

It came to a head when I was at my lowest ebb recently. I had become really depressed and desperate because of my symptoms. I felt so confused and I didn’t know what was going on.  I decided to seek professional help and guidance. 

I came to see Sarah after reading other testimonials. I am writing this testimonial because it might encourage somebody to seek professional help rather than struggling on their own. From someone who was a doubter I am living proof that CBT can help someone. I no longer have panic attacks and I manage my anxiety very well. I have a different outlook on life, because I no longer worry about when am I going to be anxious again. I no longer fear it.  

As a tradesman I appreciated that we followed a logical and well structured protocol in the therapy. The sessions with Sarah built upon each other and we monitored my progress.  I had been worried that therapy would be “fluffy” and would not suit me. There was nothing “fluffy” about it. Therapy was in a nice easy environment but also very focused. I felt in good hands.

Towards the end of the sessions Sarah presented me with some graphs of my progress and that alone was amazing. This was tangible evidence of the fact things had gone the way I had wanted them. I knew I felt better but it was great to actually see it. Thanks Sarah.

Male, aged 46 (September 2019)

CBT AND EMDR TREATMENT FOR PANIC ATTACKS WHILST DRIVING AND HEIGHTENED ANXIETY

I came to see Sarah following a severe panic attack whilst driving and finding myself in a state of constant anxiety. This heightened anxiety was not typical for me but had quietly built up over a period of approximately a year, without me fully realising. I didn’t know what to expect from CBT but Sarah put me at ease instantly and explained everything very clearly.

Over a course of sessions, we looked at what was maintaining my heightened anxiety level. We successfully reduced this and I now only experience anxiety when appropriate.

I mentioned to Sarah that the memory of the panic attack was still vivid and I could still recall physically how it felt. At this point I was still avoiding driving any significant distance and was sticking to local journey. The mere thought of driving could incite the same symptoms. Using EMDR we were successfully able to neutralise the memory of the panic attack. I am now returned to my status as a confident driver.

Female, aged 45 (September 2019)

CBT and EMDR for Panic Attacks

My GP said I was having panic attacks. This was a surprise because I thought there was something wrong with my circulation or I was having mini-strokes. I was experiencing symptoms such as heart palpitations, numbness, tingling, dizziness, feeling short of breath, nausea, wobbly legs and feeling disconnected from my body.

To my surprise and relief, CBT and EMDR have helped with my panic attacks.  They have now disappeared.

The EMDR processed old memories enabling me to let go of a lot of the anger I had from my past, which was impacting onto my daily life. I had not known how to process this anger effectively before without getting overwhelmed by it. Before doing EMDR I used to shut down when I tried to deal with my past issues.  To my amazement and delight, the treatment significantly reduced the number of panic attacks I had and their strength.  However, very occasionally I felt the start of a panic attack building up, the CBT part of the therapy trained me to control my panic.

I now live free of panic attacks.

(Female aged 33)

CBT for Panic Attacks

Through EMDR I feel a lot happier and more confident. It's really helped me overcome my fears and my panic attacks. I feel like I've achieved a lot. I've learnt a lot of strategies to help me deal with day-to-day life. I'm really glad that I've done this.

(Female aged 25)

From the age of 18 I would experience the occasional panic attack. These got more and more frequent as I got older until one particularly stressful event in my mid-twenties left me in what felt like a permanent state of panic.  I felt like I could no longer function day to day and didn’t know what to do. I’m so lucky I found Sarah and EMDR at that point in my life.

The things I learnt in these sessions completely changed my life and now I feel confident that if those feelings were ever to arise again, I would be fully capable of dealing with them.

I am an actor so it’s very important that I can control my nerves and not start to panic in response to some of the triggers that come up in my work such as auditions, challenging work schedules and performing in front of my peers. Thanks to the work I did with Sarah, I am not only a better actor but a better, stronger person too.

(Male aged 26)