July 7, 2009

Phobias and Panic Attacks

by Gordon Dalwood

Everyone has a fear of something. This is understandable and it is also a very good thing. Fear is a warning sign that is intended to protect people from harm. As such, phobias have their benefits. However, when fear becomes intense and irrational, this can lead to a panic attack which is an extreme that is certainly best avoided.

Mild phobias certainly have their place in the natural harmony of how the mind works. However, severe and intense feelings of anxiety are certainly not helpful. This is because they do not aid in helping a person maintain their defenses, Often, they break down a person's ability to take proper care of himself.

This is mainly due to an individual's cognition and concentration gets drastically affected, because of panic attacks occurring, which can overwhelm them. The person then becomes unaware of their environment, which drastically limits their ability to watch over their own safety. And this is not exaggerating this condition at all.

For example, imagine if a person had a severe phobia about getting into a car accident. Such phobias do not manifest regularly, but they do occur when a certain trigger takes effect. As such, a man stricken with such a phobia is driving his car on a highway late at night. Something triggers his phobias and he cannot wait to get out of the car. However, this is impossible given the situation. This leads to anxiety building up severely which, in turn, develops into a panic attack.

This makes the person get overwhelmed to the point of not being able to drive their car. This is a very dangerous scenario for not only the driver, but also other people on the road too. This situation can very well happen, and is the reason the connection between panic attacks and phobias should always be thought of as serious in nature.

Of course, not all phobias lead to panic attacks. But, there is always the possibility that even a mild phobia could eventually manifest into a panic attack if it is allowed to reach such levels. This is why it is critical to seek a professional evaluation if certain phobias seem to be intrusive or burgeoning.

How do you tell if a phobia is abnormal? If the phobia symptoms are happening at regular intervals and come on too easily. This can impact your mental health negatively and you need to get medical treatment to get this phobia under control. A lot of people will try to ignore having problems, and this makes the problems more severe. The thoughts and feeling that are intrusive in nature can bring on panic attacks, and detrimentally affect your health mentally and physically.

Phobias do have their good qualities, but they can cause panic attacks too, which are not good for you. Please seek out medical treatment if you are having phobias and panic attacks occurring at the same time. You need to get your body back to working harmoniously again, and the right treatment can do this.

About the Author:

Filed under About Anxiety by Gordon Dalwood

Permalink Print Comment

Trackback URI

http://www.About-Anxiety.com/blog/about-anxiety/699/phobias-and-panic-attacks/trackback

Leave a Comment