For me it doesn't help. I don't get panic attacks often nowadays and even when I do, they are so mild in comparison to the past that I'm not even sure if they are considered panic attacks per say, but I remember my thinking process during these crappy times and I also remember how it differed throughout the years. One common thing about them is feeling vulnerable and out of place, like fish out of water. Now, I'm not a person who is overly concerned about what people think about me at any given moment, but when I was experiencing a panic attack, Ι was catapulted in a different planet, with a different gravitational field where how people viewed me was of the essence. So, no, I don't remember being in a situation such as this, but if it did happen, I would feel like I'm experiencing a malfunction in the system and like this is not enough, it shows. "Oh shit, I knew it! This is serious!" It would make me feel even more paranoid. In situations such as these, I try to avoid people, certainly don't want to be the center of attention and hope to avoid any concerned stares. It somewhat multiplies the effect. I'm not in the mood to talk about it, because I know that it's up to me to trim it down internally and focusing upon explaining myself to someone else is just more troublesome. There's not much to say really. Maybe there are ton of things to say, but scattered, most probably irrelevant mumblings of an overloaded mind. Better to skip this catastrophe from leaking into the environment. I might regret it later. So, I'd rather work on it quietly and nip it in the bud, without any other distractions (which seems to work better. Within time it has gotten easier) and if this fails, I'll leave and find seclusion in my room alone. I need alone time. But this is my way of handling this issue. Everybody has their own mantra. So in short, no. It would definitely make things worse.
It was over ten years ago but when I had one I was prescribed a medication. I went on vacation and became worried that I had to know I had the medication available more than I had to take the medication. I even called my doctor when I thought I didn't have it with me and he told me to relax that if I didn't have it he could just call in a prescription to a pharm near where I was. I could tell he thought I was overreacting. I did have the med and relaxed. I never even took any of it I just needed to know I had it. A friend of mine said she quit smoking that way. She didn't need to smoke but needed to know she had cigarettes in the house in case she needed to.
I recommend “Hope and Help For Your Nerves” by Claire Weeks, for a classic and accurate description of panic attacks and how to understand and manage them. Should be available at used book outlets (paperback), may be available on kindle.
When my friend was having his attack, learning that it was a panic attack and not something life-threatening made all the difference—because the information came from medical people who were monitoring his vital signs at the time. He could easily see what had triggered the attack, and immediately calmed down. I don't know how much good it would do, however, if somebody thought they were having a heart attack, and an untrained friend or family member told them it was just a panic attack. If the sufferer feels they need to get 'checked out,' I'd say it's probably a good idea to do just that. Maybe if it becomes chronic, they could invest in a heart monitor, or some other device that would reassure them. As a bystander of the event, I was startled at how physical his symptoms were. His breathing became laboured, his facial colour turned white, he was sweating profusely, was dizzy and couldn't stand up, etc. I would have immediately thought ...SHIT! HEART ATTACK. And it wasn't.
Not for me. Other people being present causes me to try and suppress the attack, which just makes everything worse. Someone telling me I'm having a panic attack may snap me out of the manic state, but that only causes me to then internalize the panic. I prefer to just let it pass because then I feel better. If someone else is there, it makes it seem less severe from the outside, but internally nothing has changed. This increases my bloodpressure by a lot and if it stays that way for too long, it'll give me a really wicked headache. To respond to the original question. I can almost always feel mine coming on, they don't come all at once. They're usually triggered by specific things, but not necessarily at the same time. It usually happens when something upsets me, then remains unresolved, which slowly increases anxiety over time. Sudden anxiety I can deal with quite well, I even enjoy some high stress situations. The "panic attack" for me is more analogous to an ear-worm: just something that loops in my mind, causing me slightly more anxiety each time until I can't take it anymore. Then I start to stutter and my hands shake. The worse my stress gets, the worse both will be. I can control the shaking if I focus on it, but not the stutter. If I can get somewhere quite and be alone, I can stop it at this point. I also usually try to find a Xanax, which helps my attacks but takes a few minutes to kick in. Once things get too overwhelming though, the stuttering gives way to almost non-nonsensical rambling and crying, and the shaking spreads to my arms and legs, which I can not control. I very rarely experience audio hallucinations too, sometimes they say nasty things, sometimes they're almost like background voices that aren't saying anything in particular. I've had visual hallucinations in the past, but nothing vivid, usually just some swirling lights and colors. I see the same thing if I run for too hard and too long, so I assume these are actually caused by blood pressure. It usually lasts for between 2 and 10 minutes and leaves me with a wicked headache just behind my eyes.
