Panic attacks are overwhelming to go through and can affect anyone, not just those that live with mental health issues. It can be very difficult to see someone you care for in a moment of a panic attack. In this Topic Tuesday we will discuss insights that will help you better support a loved one who experiences panic attacks.
Special Event Note:
For this Topic Tuesday our content team will be reviewing our discussion after the night and will use some of your wonderful insights to help put together a SANE blog post to highlight helpful tips, strategies and thoughts on supporting loved one’s dealing with panic attacks. Quotes will be completely de-identified, your forum username will not be used and therefore your anonymity maintained and respected. If for some reason you do not want any posts quoted, please feel free to e-mail team@saneforums.org
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I'm new here - what is Topic Tuesday?
Topic Tuesday runs from 7pm - 9pm AEST monthly. Each month we focus on a different topic, with the session facilitated by a Community Manager or Moderator. Sometimes Topic Tuesday will feature a special guest, who is an expert in the topic.
The first post of the thread (this one) will give you an idea of what the topic is and what will be covered.
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Great to have you along @Former-Member!
Let's get into a discussion area and others can come along 😃
By definition a panic attack is a sudden rush of intense anxiety or fear together with a surge of frightening physical sensations and thoughts. They can be short, sometimes out of the blue and scary. But even with definitions, they will all be and look different for everyone.
Here is a little excerpt from an article on bustle: "All panic attacks do not look alike," Dr. Caitlin Simpson, director of clinical operations at Footprints to Recovery (American organisation). "While symptoms may be similar, they are often experienced differently from person to person. There are multiple symptoms that can be experienced during a panic attack, and therefore some people may experience some symptoms while others do not."
In your relationship with a person you care for or about, what has a panic attack looked like? I thought by sharing these visual insights, we can learn some of the physical warning signs that tell us a panic attack may be happening.