6 Common Symptoms of a Mild Anxiety Attack

Having mild anxiety attacks can be very disruptive to your life, especially if you get them often. An anxiety, or panic, attack is something that thousands of people experience every day. While people do not often talk about their having experienced these attacks, they are actually quite a common occurrence for many people.

Some of the symptoms of an anxiety attack are so mild that you may not be sure you are really having this type of problem or whether you are experiencing something completely unrelated.

If you think you may be having anxiety attacks now and again but aren't completely sure, see whether you have any of the following 6 common symptoms of a mild anxiety attack:

1. You have blurred vision

The onset of an attack can start slowly, almost unnoticeably. You may start noticing small changes to the way you feel, such as having slightly blurred vision and the inability to concentrate on what you are doing. This might be accompanied by feelings of being restless or antsy.

2. You feel a tightness in the chest

As the attack starts to get more powerful, you may also feel a general tightness in your chest. This will not be nearly as acute as what someone feels when they are having a heart attack. Rather, it feels like someone or something is constricting your chest a bit - and you may also feel like you are having trouble breathing.

3. Your heart races much faster than usual

A few more minutes into the attack and you notice that your heart is racing faster and faster. This may feel odd to you, especially if it happens when you were not doing any particular exercises, jogging, or even walking fast. The strange feeling that your heart is racing faster without a good reason can also make you feel worried or nervous, which can add to your condition in a vicious cycle.

4. You have trouble focusing on your responsibilities

At this point in the attack, you start to really have trouble focusing on anything that requires balanced attention, such as driving, studying, working or taking care of children. This can be a frustrating aspect of these attacks, because nobody likes to feel that a condition like this can have so much control that it distracts them from performing their duties properly.

5. Your thoughts race uncontrollably

Another common symptom is that your thoughts start racing out of control. You may have the continuous thought during the attack that you are going to have a seizure or otherwise lose control. While these fears are almost always completely unfounded for sufferers of these attacks, feeling this way can still be very scary at the time.

6. Afterward, you feel exhausted

A final symptom is the way you feel once the attack is over - exhausted. Anxiety attacks can drain the energy out of you, making you feel like you just ran a marathon or read a thick novel in a single afternoon.

If three or more of these common symptoms sound familiar, you may be having the occasional mild attack. You owe it to yourself to find out how to stop them from happening, once and for all.