Many sufferers of anxiety, panic attacks, and panic disorder have tried to control their symptoms with medication, but unfortunately, this is not an ideal solution. For the majority of people, the commonly-prescribed medications don’t fully control symptoms, and side effects ranging from mild to severe are often a problem, and may result in the person having to discontinue the medication.
Physicians who prescribe medication for panic attacks and anxiety disorders will often not take a patients concerns about side-effects seriously or they may deny that what the patient is experiencing is even a possible side-effect of the medication. This may be out of denial on the part of some physicians that what they prescribed could possibly be doing harm, or it may simply be that they feel the side-effects are a good trade-off if the drugs help with the patients panic attacks and anxiety. Either way, many doctors will avoid dealing with patient concerns about side-effects if they can.
The lack of communication about the potential problems of medications between doctors and patients can lead to frustration for many patients. Some sufferers of panic attacks and anxiety wind up giving up hope for a real solution and resolve themselves to tolerating the side effects as best they can in the hopes that the medication will keep their anxiety and panic symptoms to a tolerable level.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are effective methods for handling panic attacks and anxiety without medication. Various self-help and professional counselling techniques allow individuals to prepare for panic attacks, and train them to calm themselves down quickly and effectively. These methods include cognitive therapy, the Sedona Method, Emotional Freedom Technique, and Neuro Linquistic programming (NLP).
Each of these methods has its own unique strengths. While one may work better for a given individual than another, all of them provide tools to help panic attack sufferers to take back control of their minds. The vast majority of people are able to use one or more of these methods to make panic attacks and anxiety a thing of the past.
