Information About Panic Attack

What is a panic attack?

If you have ever had a panic attack, it does not necessarily mean that you have or are going to develop a panic disorder. Many people have a life of panic attack in their life without following up on complications. There is therefore very little reason to worry if you have just had one or two episodes of panic attack. Nevertheless, if you suffer from any of the problems listed below, you may be suffering from panic disorder

• You have frequent panic attacks
• You have been about to have another panic attack for over a month
• You have changed your behavior significantly because of panic attacks, for example by avoiding places where you have previously panicked.

Studies show that panic disorder usually develops in older adolescents and those in their twenties. It develops rarely after age 35, and is found twice as much in women than in men.

Once it has developed, panic disorder tends to become a chronic disease. The frequency and intensity of seizures then tend to decrease gradually over time. However, the sooner you adopt the right treatment, the better you will go through your seizures.

Some facts about panic disorders

• Approximately 2.4 million Americans aged 18 to 54, or 1.7% of the population in this age group, suffer from panic disorder
• Panic disorder can co-exist with other diseases, most often depression and alcohol or drug addiction
• Appropriate diagnosis and treatment for other disorders is essential to properly treat panic disorder.

Causes of panic disorder

What are the causes of panic disorder? Although the exact causes of panic disorder are not clearly identified, there appear to be genetic origins to the problem and this is therefore common in many family members. If someone in your family suffers from panic disorder, you have predispositions to develop this disorder too. It also seems that the phenomenon is linked to periods of major life transitions such as becoming a graduate and entering the workforce, getting married, or having a child. Severe stress caused by the death of a loved one, a divorce or the loss of one's job can also trigger panic attacks.

Diagnose and recognize panic attacks

How to diagnose panic disorder? Panic disorder can be difficult to identify because of its similarity to other medical problems. Most of the symptoms and effects of the panic attack are physical. In fact, these physical symptoms (such as chest pain and difficulty breathing) resemble the symptoms found in heart disease, asthma and hyperthyroidism. To diagnose a panic disorder, your doctor will need to eliminate these possibilities first, so it may take some time before your physical symptoms are really connected to panic disorder.

There are other physical problems that usually happen in case of panic disorder:

• Bellyache, stomach cramps, abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea
• Mitral insufficiency , a breathing difficulty that occurs when the left ventricle works harder than it should
• Chronic fatigue

The effects of panic attacks

What are the effects and consequences of panic attacks? Even if an isolated episode of panic attacks lasts only a few minutes, its effects can be quite significant. If you are suffering from panic disorder, the recurrence and the memory of intense fear and terror repeated during attacks and can negatively impact your self-confidence and causes some serious problems in your life. everyday life.

• Anticipated anxiety : Instead of feeling relaxed and feeling yourself between periods of panic attack, you feel anxious and stressed. This form of anxiety resembles generalized anxiety disorder and provides fertile ground for future panic attacks. This "fear of being afraid" is all the time present and can be very disabling.
• Phobic avoidance : You start to avoid certain situations or environments. This avoidance can be based on the feeling that a given situation has been the source of a previous panic attack. Or you may want to avoid places that would be difficult to escape or difficult to help in a panic attack.

Other complications of panic disorder are:

• Depression - Depression is common in people with panic disorder. Panic attacks and anxiety can cause serious problems in your everyday life. This loss of control over your life can get the upper hand and make you depressed.
• Abuse of Substance - You may be trying to cure your anxiety with alcohol or medications. Studies show that 30% of people with panic disorder drink alcohol and 17% take drugs to try to cure their symptoms. Unfortunately, this kind of self-help attempt only makes things worse. .
• Suicide - According to a study conducted in the United States, approximately 20% of people with panic disorder try to commit suicide.
• Agoraphobia - Agoraphobia (or social fear, or social phobia) is a common consequence of untreated panic disorder.