Panic Attack: An Overview
A panic attack consists of unexpected feelings of extreme fear and dread that strike for no apparent reason, causing the heart to race, rapid breathing, sweating, and shakiness. Some people who are having a panic attack go to the hospital, believing they are having a
heart attack.
A panic attack can come right out of the blue for no apparent reason, even when you're not in a situation that would normally make you feel stress,
anxiety, or fear. You can't predict when a panic attack will occur, and many people develop intense anxiety between episodes, worrying about when and where the next one will strike.
The
cause of panic attacks is not fully understood. It is believed that genetics, stressful life events, and even a person's basic temperament can all contribute to the development of a panic attack. Intense scientific research is being conducted to better understand the cause of panic attacks.
Common Symptoms of a Panic Attack
People who are having a panic attack have feelings of terror that strike suddenly and repeatedly with no warning.
Common symptoms of a panic attack include:
- Pounding heart
- Feeling sweaty, weak, faint, or dizzy
- Hands may tingle or feel numb
- Feeling flushed or chilled
- Nausea
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain or smothering sensations
- A sense of unreality
- Hot flashes or chills
- Fear of impending doom or loss of control.
You may genuinely believe you're having a heart attack or losing your mind, or that you're on the verge of death.
Panic attacks can occur at any time, even during sleep. A panic attack generally peaks within 10 minutes, but some symptoms may last much longer.
Diagnosing a Panic Attack or Panic Disorder
People who have repeated panic attacks may have a medical condition called
panic disorder. Panic disorder is diagnosed either after four panic attacks within four weeks or after one or more panic attacks followed by at least a month of persistent fear of having another panic attack. A minimum of four of the symptoms listed previously must have developed during at least one of the panic attacks.
Many people with panic attacks and panic disorder visit the emergency room repeatedly or see a number of doctors before they obtain a correct diagnosis. Some people with panic disorder may go for years without learning that they have a real, treatable illness.
The risk of developing panic disorder appears to be inherited. Not everyone who experiences a panic attack will develop panic disorder. For example, many people have one panic attack but never have another. For those who do have panic disorder, however, it's important to seek treatment. When left untreated, the condition can become disabling.
Panic Attack and Other Medical Conditions
Panic disorder is often accompanied by other serious conditions, such as
depression, drug abuse, or alcoholism, and may lead to a pattern of avoiding places or situations where panic attacks have occurred. For example, if a panic attack strikes while you're riding in an elevator, you may develop a fear of elevators. If you start avoiding elevators, it could then affect your choice of a job or apartment, and greatly restrict other parts of your life as well.
Some people's lives become so restricted that they avoid normal, everyday activities, such as grocery shopping or driving. In some cases, they become housebound. Or, they may be able to confront a feared situation only if accompanied by a spouse or other trusted person.
Basically, these people avoid any situation in which they would feel helpless if a panic attack were to occur. When people's lives become so restricted, as happens in about one-third of people with panic disorder, the condition is called
agoraphobia. Early treatment of panic disorder can often prevent agoraphobia.
Different Treatment Methods for a Panic Attack
Medication can include high-potency anti-
anxiety drugs like
alprazolam. Several classes of
antidepressants (such as
paroxetine, one of the newer selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and the older tricyclics and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAO inhibitors) are considered "gold standards" for treating panic disorder. Sometimes, a combination of therapy and medication is the most effective approach to helping people manage their symptoms.
Proper treatment helps 70 to 90 percent of people with panic disorder, usually within six to eight weeks.
Approximately 2.4 million American adults ages 18 to 54, or about 1.7 percent of people in this age group, have panic disorder in a given year.
Panic disorder typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood.
About one in three people with panic disorder develop
agoraphobia, a condition in which they become afraid of being in any place or situation where escape might be difficult or help unavailable in the event of a panic attack.
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