Panic attacks. Alternative treatments/ therapists??

[rexilaperm]

Hi Everyone, I am not sure where to start! My husband had his first panic attack about 10 yrs ago, seemingly triggered by a stressful event. Since then he has had one or two a year sometimes going for two years with nothing. Not on any medication or treatments for it. They have recently begun to get worse and effect his and our family daily life. Dr is keen to start trialling medications and has no suggestions as to alternative treatments as he believes meds is the first option. I would like to start at a Psychologist or Psychiatrist first to get there assessment/input? There must be other solutions? 

Never had any experience with this and don't know anyone who has.

Thanks

[JessF]

Hello rexilaperm, welcome to Beyond Blue.

I'm a little concerned at why you are so against medication? Would you be the same if your husband had a heart condition or diabetes, for example?  "Alternative medicine" comes in two flavours, scientifically speaking. It's either not yet been proven to work, or been proven not to work.  As the comedian Tim Minchin is fond of saying, alternative medicine that has been proven to work has another name - "medicine".  If you don't trust your GP's opinion, then by all means seek a second one, but this has been going on for several years now and is affecting both your lives. I don't believe your GP would be suggesting medication if he didn't think it could help.

Regarding the psychiatrist and psychologist, I would suggest definitely seeing the latter irrespective of whether your husband decides to take medication. Psychologists provide "talking therapies", coping strategies and skills for dealing with anxiety day to day and these work well, in my experience, alongside medication. Psycholgoists aren't doctors and don't/can't prescribe medications.

Psychiatrists are mental health specialists who are also medically trained (like an oncologist dealing with cancer, etc).  They can provide talking therapies and prescribe medicine, but in my experience they are very very expensive and aren't really as good with people as psychologists (or even GPs) are. 

[rexilaperm]

THanks JessF,

I never said I was against medication. Alternative no longer means hippies sipping herbal tea and rubbing potions on their third eye. Medical science has advanced in my limited research since posting here,  it seems there have been advancements in treatments and therapies. I was hoping there were others who had investigated these options too? As you have said a GP is not a specialist in this area, none of them are. As for heart attacks and diabetes, if you don't take your meds you die, so comparing the two conditions is irrelevant in this specific case.

[JessF]

Hello rexilaperm, if you are not against medication then why don't you listen to your husband's doctor? I don't wish to sound melodramatic, but depression and anxiety not properly treated can kill. At the very least it affects quality of life, as you are experiencing at the moment.