Panic Attacks and Self Help Books
“Am I having a panic attack – or something even worse?”
“I feel like I’m losing my mind, going crazy. My heart starts pounding. I feel dizzy, frightened, and unreal as if everything is just slipping away. I become overwhelmed with a sense of impending doom, afraid I’m going to lose control and do something embarrassing or harmful, like scream uncontrollably or jump out of the car while it’s moving.”
Those are the words of Gail describing a panic attack, one of several kinds of anxiety disorders which trouble about 23 million Americans.
Although panic and anxiety disorders are among the most treatable of all psychiatric disorders, fewer than one quarter of those suffering receive treatment. Literally millions of us suffer in silence from panic attacks, phobias or other aspects of anxiety disorder.
Wasted opportunities, wasted years and wasted lives are too often the price of anxiety disorder. People who suffer from social phobias, for example, often cannot talk in public and find their professional lives seriously damaged. Others are afraid to fly or have to check the stove over and over and over again before they can go out.
But there is help. If you are hesitant about seeking professional help, consider starting with a book from your library. That way you can read a little about your problem, see that you are not alone. You can explore some types of therapy, some medications that are sometimes prescribed as well as alternative therapies.
At whatever level you can begin, begin.
A brand new progam has just been released that I personally thought was excellent – it’s called Easy Calm by a guy called Jon Mercer. He has obviously been where we’ve all ben in the past with anxiety, and has come up with some very unique and pretty powerful techniques for overcoming it. Take a look over at his site Easy Calm.
Here are some books you can check out to help get you started:
“Triumph over Few,” by Jerilyn Ross is a book of help and hope for people with anxiety, panic attacks and phobias.
“Nature’s Prone.” by Judith Sachs provides natural therapies and alternatives to drugs to rid you of anxiety, depression, panic attacks and stress.
“EMDR” by Francine Shapiro and Margot Silk Forrest focuses on Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy, described by the authors as a breakthrough therapy for overcoming anxiety, stress and trauma.
