10 Major Symptoms Of Anxiety Attacks

Anxiety attacks often seem to appear without warning or provocation the first time a person experiences one. That is why an anxiety attack is so frightening. It leaves a person panicked, afraid, sick and dreading that something horrible, even life-threatening is taking place. Often times a panic attack will mimic signs of a very serious situation such as a heart attack, a seizure or a stroke.

Anxiety attacks are different with each person that suffers one. However, many will experience a few or many of the same symptoms to varying degrees. After one of these attacks. the feeling of panic and confusion over what took place is prevalent. Often it seems too scary to even try to explain it to somebody because the person does not understand it themselves.

Here are the top ten major symptoms of anxiety attacks to help you understand if what you may be experiencing is related.

1. One of the most common symptoms of an anxiety attack is a rapid heartbeat sometimes accompanied by a feeling of heaviness in the chest or even chest pain. The sudden onset of this symptom can certainly lead a person to feel as if they are suffering a heart attack.

2. Shortness of breath or hyperventilation is another major symptom. Difficulty in breathing can result in a lack of oxygen which may cause a person to feel dizzy, even to the point of fainting.

3. Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea may also occur during an attack and often times a person will lose control of their bladder or bowels if they pass out.

4. Sweating or flushing occurs to various parts of the body including the chest, neck and face. It may feel like the person is experiencing an abnormally high fever. Yet, it may also feel the opposite way in that a person has body chills and shivering.

5. Different parts of the body may succumb to shaking uncontrollably. This may be a slight shake in the hands, or it may be as severe as trembling of the arms, legs, or head.

6. A less commonly known symptom of an anxiety attack is a heightened skin sensitivity. A person may feel extra sensitive to cold, hot and/or being touched. The person can feel sensations on the skin such as passing through spider webs, something crawling on the skin or excessive itching on the scalp, hands, arms, legs or feet. There can also be a tingly or numb sensation on parts of the body.

7. During an anxiety attack, there can be a lot of confusion and fear. These feelings are not only symptoms of the attack, but can also act as a trigger to a future attack. It can foster a cycle of dread and anticipation causing attacks to surface seemingly out of nowhere. Many sufferers are able to sense when an attack is about to happen but are unable to thwart it.

8. Another major symptom is weakened arms or legs, which can also mimic the symptoms of a heart attack or stroke. They can feel heavy, immovable, tingly and numb. After an attack, this symptom is often the last to disappear, resulting in a person being immobile for a period of time.

9. Vision is often affected during an anxiety attack in the form of tunnel vision, double vision or blurred vision.

10. Last but not least, an attack can also be accompanied by a headache with varying pain intensities ranging from dull to migraine strength.

These are only the ten most common symptoms. While they can occur by themselves, more often they are experienced together by the anxiety attack sufferer. Anxiety attacks can be a frightening experience, and the only way to stop them is first to get informed about them, and then seek out a successful treatment for yourself. Quite often several treatments must be tried before a successful one is found, as each person's case is unique.