You may have been there before: You are going about your normal day when all of a sudden, the world begins closing in, you start struggling to take a breath and you feel as if you are about to implode for no seeming reason. This is what happens when you have panic disorder, a form of anxiety disorder that can strike almost any time.
Panic disorder can be a vicious cycle, feeding on the fears you feel during an attack and causing you to develop phobias regarding those particular events and increasing the chances of having another panic attack in a similar situation. While there are no complete cures for panic disorder, there are many effective treatments to help combat the feelings of panic and anxiety and restore your control over your fears.
Causes
Panic attacks can be debilitating, though they are usually not life threatening unless they are caused by an underlying health condition. There are a number of panic attacks causes, or your panic attacks may be caused by a combination of the following circumstances.
Inherited
There has long been speculation and some evidence to support that fact that anxiety disorders, including panic attacks, are inherited. If your family member has an anxiety disorder and you develop symptoms, it is likely your panic attacks are inherited.
Learned
Otherwise healthy people may suddenly develop panic attacks. Common triggers include major life changes such as marriage, divorce, having a baby, losing a loved one or loss of a job. Any major change in your living circumstances may trigger panic attacks.
Health Conditions
There are certain health conditions that, when untreated, can cause symptoms similar to panic attacks. If you are suffering from panic attacks, it is important to rule out these conditions to be sure a potentially serious disease is not the cause.
- Asthma
- Heart Disease
- Hyperthyroidism
- Hypoglycemia
- Mitral Valve Prolapse
Medications
Steroids and asthma medications have both been known to trigger panic attacks. If you develop panic attacks after you start taking these medications, check with your doctor to see if alternatives are available, or if a different dose might be effective without causing panic attacks.
Vitamin Deficiencies
There is not clear research to prove that deficiencies are panic attacks causes, but there is speculation that zinc, magnesium and vitamin B deficiency may lead to anxiety and panic attack symptoms. You can order a blood test to see if you are deficient and, following your doctor’s instructions, supplement accordingly.
Helping to understand panic attacks causes can help you and your care provider dictate a successful course of treatment that can involve changing circumstances that cause your panic attacks, or overcoming fears that may be triggering them. The important thing is to create a plan of action and proactively work to correct the cause of your panic attacks, which allows you to get back to living your life.
Medication
Panic disorder can be treated by a variety of anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medications. Common medications include:
• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as Zoloft, Prozac and Celexa
• Dopaminergic drugs, including Wellbutrin and Trazadone
• Selective serotonin & norepinephrine inhibitors (SNRIs) such as Cymbalta, Pristiq and Effexor
• Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) including Parnate, Emsam and Nardil.
Therapy
Psychotherapy can be a very effective treatment for panic disorder, especially when combined with a medication. Therapists can help you explore the behaviors, patterns and causes involved in panic disorder and panic attacks. Once you understand the reasons for your panic disorder, you can begin working on correcting them.
Meditation
Meditation has been proven to be an effective treatment for anxiety and panic disorder. Not only can it improve mood and reduce anxiety symptoms, it also lowers overall feelings of distress by focusing the mind and helping to rid it of overactive thoughts.
Panic attacks can occur suddenly, sometimes without any warning or noticeable trigger. While scary, they are usually not physically harmful, but they can interfere with normal life. There are no specific panic attack cures, but treatments can help you recover quickly from a panic attack and work to resolve the phobias and triggers that create panic attacks.
Relaxation Techniques
Relaxation techniques have proven to be very effective at combating panic attacks, including reducing the severity of them when they do occur. Many anxiety disorders are a result of overactive or even frenzied thought processes, so learning how to calm your mind can have dramatic effects. Breathing techniques, meditation and hypnotherapy are all examples of relaxation techniques.
The most important thing to do is work with your doctor or therapist to formulate an aggressive treatment plan to help overcome your panic attacks. Modern treatments come as close to panic attack cures as possible, allowing many sufferers to return to normal daily living.
Anxiety Attack Vs. Panic Attack
In most contexts, anxiety attack and panic attack are treated to mean exactly the same thing. There are clinical differences, however, and while they are both episodes of intense anxiety, they have similar yet different symptoms.
Anxiety attacks tend to build up gradually before coming to a head, and are due to excessive worry. In panic attacks, symptoms typically come on suddenly and all at once. While panic attacks are usually relatively short-lived, anxiety attacks can last for some time as they build up in intensity. While they share many symptoms, panic attacks tend to be more severe, with more intense feelings.
Anxiety tends to stem from more common, everyday stresses and occurs in many more people. Panic attacks are directly related to anxiety disorder and may require treatments such as supplements, medication, relaxation techniques or therapy. Neither type of attack is life threatening, although panic attacks may feel very dangerous and can sometimes be a symptom of an underlying medical condition. If you are suffering from panic attacks, it is a good idea to seek medical attention to ensure there are no other conditions causing your panic.
When you look at the symptoms of anxiety attack vs. panic attack, you can see that there is a significant difference between the two, but most people use both terms interchangeably to mean panic attacks.
