During a panic attack, you get a sudden sense of overwhelming panic and fear.
Panic attacks usually last for up to half an hour, with the worst symptoms in the first 10 minutes. Afterwards you may feel very tired.
If you have panic disorder they can happen as often as several times a day. Panic attacks can even start while you’re asleep and wake you up in the middle of the night.
Common signs and symptoms of a panic attack include:
a sense of overwhelming panic or fear
the thought that you are dying, choking, ‘losing control’ or ‘going mad’
difficulty breathing (feeling that there is not enough air)
dizziness, light-headedness or feeling faint.
Some people may also experience ‘derealisation’ - a sense that you or the world around you is not real. This symptom seems to be related to the physiological changes that happen in your body during the panic attack.
