Hi. I have a friend who is currently in her mid teens (15) and she is generally a very worried person and there is always something on her mind.
Seemingly at random times, even while perfectly calm, she experiences these attacks where her heart start beating really fast, she feels really hot and it feels like someone is gripping at her neck and squeezing hard, preventing her from breathing properly. These may last anywhere from a few minutes to multiple hours.
Is this an anxiety attack of some sort or is this something else? What can she do about it? Please help, things are getting out of hand!
hello, your friend needs to inform her parents of her symptoms so they can get her checked out by the family doctor. just to make sure everything is OK. Anxiety can show symptoms of rapid heartbeat, and shortness of breath , however it's important that her parents are made aware of this.
you're a good friend!
Her parents are well aware of the situation. She had an appointment with a doctor who told them they'd refer her to a larger mental health institution because it was probably some sort of anxiety disorder. This has not happened yet, however, and these continue to occur. This last one was very severe and left her in a very dark state of mind. I don't know what to do.
Awww how sad. At this point all you can do is be there for her and be a listening ear. Sometimes slow deep breathing can help calm things down. But now it's up to her parents to act on this.
When I get anxious, I listen to guided mindfulness meditation's I find on YouTube. They really calm me down. They also have meditations on anxiety, etc. So many to choose from. They teach us how to deal with anxiety and negative thinking etc.
I really hope she gets the help she needs!
It sounds like classic anxiety symptoms. I suffer from anxiety and panic attacks they are not fun. They can not kill you but can be very scary. I would say the best thing to do is go to the doctor. They have many options to choose for treatment. There are also meditation videos on you tube she can try.
I have anxiety and share the same symptoms. I choke when the attacks are bad. The only thing that helped me was medication. Of course this would require a visit to the doctor's. Any idea why they haven't scheduled her an appointment?