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Assist Therapy
Counselling and Psychotherapy
Panic Attacks
Panic attacks are mainly caused by fear, and as a result, adrenaline is released into the bloodstream, which provides the body with a heightened response in a crises situation. Although this physical response can assist in a crisis, the panic attack it is often perceived by the person experiencing it to be more critical than what it actually is. A person prone to panic attacks may struggle with a lack of social support, emotional and psychological problems, financial issues, illness or stressful life events.
Panic Attacks are Induced by extreme levels of anxiety and apprehension. They occur when a person’s stress levels or feelings of fear intensify, and when they don’t have the skills set to combat the attack. Panic attacks can be instantaneously triggered by certain environmental stimuli or can occur as a result of certain cognitive processes. The mind and body experience a surge of intense symptoms, which can last for several minutes or even hours, leaving the person feeling drained from the experience. The physical symptoms vary in accordance to the individual’s perception of the circumstances.
Counselling for Panic attacks
At Aspects Therapy, we offer Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for panic attacks, as well as an extensive combination of CBT techniques that prove instrumental for overcoming such attacks. Our psychotherapists are highly trained to identify cognitive distortions, challenge irrational beliefs and adjust perceptual interpretations, all of which have a tremendous success rate in cognitive restructuring. We offer practical interventions for physical symptom reduction and integrate a psychoanalytic strategy, to explore and identify unconscious source anxieties which may manifest during a panic attack.
Causes of Panic Attacks:
Loss of control
Feeling overwhelmed
Surges of fear/anxiety
Catastrophic thinking
Psychological instability
Emotional dysregulation
Extreme fright
Excessive stress
Physical Symptoms:
Increased heart rate
Hyperventilation/shallow breathing
Sweating/chills
Fainting/dizziness
Disorientation
Tight chest
Tingling sensation in hands
Nausea
When unrealistic expectations of events are understood, clients can acquire the necessary skills, such as controlled breathing and relaxation methods, to overcome the attack as soon as it begins. Once our client’s learn ways to identify environmental or psychological triggers, and alter their perspectives in panic-inducing circumstances, they can successfully learn to control the panic attack, rather than the attack controlling them. As an end result people can learn to eliminate panic attacks completely.
As Assist Therapy, we care, we listen, and we understand
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