Anxiety Attack Symptoms - How To Spot The Panic

Spotting an anxiety attack can be quite difficult.  Whether you're looking for certain symptoms in yourself, or in a loved one, it can also be a rather stressful experience.  In this article, I've outlined a few key symptoms to look for.  I won't get into treatments or actions that should be taken if you are indeed experiencing an panic attack of sorts.  Luckily for all of us, there are a lot of good sites online that help with dealing with the symptoms of anxiety and stress.

Most anxiety attack symptoms fall into one of three main categories.  They are Cardiovascular, Respiratory, and Invisible.  Now the first two are pretty self explanatory - related to the heart and lungs respectivily.  The third one, though, is a tad curious...  Read on to find out more.

There are few things that may happen to you or a friend on the cardiovascular level during an anxiety attack.  Here are a few things to look for:

Elevated Heart Beat

The heart beat of an individual experiencing a panic attack is almost always quicker.  In some cases it's been know to get up to 5X faster than the normal rate.  If you think someone is having an attack, the first thing you should do is check their pulse.

Pale Skin

This may not seem like it's really related to the heart but it is.  Paleness is caused by the fact that a lot of blood is making it's way away from the surface of the skin and towards the muscles.  This is the body's way of preparing a person for a "flight or fight" type response that comes with panic

Dry Mouth

Much like pale skin, a dry mouth is related to the fact that blood is leaving the kidneys and digestive tract for more important organs.  Check out a person's mouth if you think they are in a state of anxiety.

Along with the heart, the lungs also seem to be adversely affected by a state of panic or extreme stress. The two are very related so this makes perfect sense. Consider the following symptoms related to breathing.

Accelerated Breath

Much like the heart beat, the rate of breath becomes a lot more rapid during an anxiety attack. If an individual is breathing very heavily and hasn't been exercising recently, there may be trouble brewing.

Open Nostrils

Along with the quick, deep breaths comes open nostrils. This is bodies way of getting the maximum amount of air into the system as humanly possible. In order to see this symptom, you'll have to get right up close and personal with the person.

Not all symptoms of a panic attack are as visible to the naked eye as the ones outlined above.  There are some things that only the person experiencing the anxiety is aware of.  This is where questioning and talking to the patient come in really handy.  Here are a few things that you could talk to the panic-stricken individual about. 

Heightened Sense Of Awareness and Attention

An individual experiencing panic will almost always feel these symptoms.  They'll be on edge, waiting to react quickly to anything that comes there way.  Ask the person how they feel and you'll see it in their reaction.

Increased Pain Threshold

The tolerance for pain of an anxious person is higher than normal.  This is all related, again, to the phenomenon known as "Fight or Flight".  Their body is willing to ignore any pain as long as it protects itself.

Anxiety attack symptoms come in many forms. I've covered the majority of them but every case is different. Below, I've compiled a list of resources to help you and your loved ones further. You may also want to check out my other hub about the best stress reliever.  There is a comments section as well. Please feel free to drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you.