Panic disorder is a widely spread anxious state that affects about 4% of all population. Women suffer from it six times more often than men. The typical start of a panic disorder is usually observed in adolescence and in the beginning of a mature age.

The exact cause of panic disorder origin is not clarified yet however it is known that there are changes in central nervous system connected to metabolism of serotonin and noradrenaline during it. Apparently, when a disease appears a significant role belongs to hereditary predisposition. Close relatives of those people who suffer from panic attacks often have the same symptoms or demonstrations of other anxiety states. Appearance of panic attacks quite often coincides with essential mental experience, stresses or changes in way of life: divorce, move, graduation, marriage, first-born birth and so on.

Often it is possible to trace a connection of panic disorder with negative emotions experienced in childhood. Approximately half part of children suffering from a school phobia (fear connected to school) has symptoms of panic disorders becoming adult.

It is possible to cure panic disorders if do it in time and with a help of professional medical interference. However, this disease may lead to severe consequences in the form of social isolation, disability and finally to a significant decline in living standards if not treated properly.

The cause of the disease.

Panic attack is a strong feeling of fear and/or inner discomfort which appears in a person unexpectedly, usually without symptoms – precursors, and is accompanied with frightened physical symptoms in the form of a sudden tachycardia, asphyxia, pain in the chest, giddiness, asthenia, feeling of unreality and own change. At that almost always there is a fear of unexpected death, loss of a control or fear to go crazy.

Panic attack develops very quickly; usually its symptoms achieve the maximum tenseness during 5-10 minutes and then disappear also so quickly. So panic attack lasts about 10-20 minutes and is over on its own not leaving any traces and not posing a real threat for a patient’s life.

It should be noted that in case of a real dangerous situation in life, appearance of anxiety emotion accompanied with corresponding physical sensations are quite normal defense reaction which trains a person for a struggle with different possible sources of threat or for escape from them.

Anxiety reaction appears without a visible reason when it is a panic attack. Panic attack reaches a person in ordinary daily situations not predisposing to anxiety development sometimes it happens even during a sleeping. As panic attack is accompanied with frightened physical symptoms and perception disturbance, patients often think that they have got a real heart attack or another disease that is dangerous for life. They are also afraid to lose control or go out of their minds.

Though during a panic attack an appeared state is extremely unpleasant for a person and difficult, it should be mentioned that a panic attack itself is not dangerous for health. It does not lead to complications, loss of control or madness.

An opportune visit to the doctor and necessary checkup realization will help to escape an excessive worry for one’s health, provoked by a patient’s lack of information.

Symptoms of a panic attack.

- sudden strong palpitation

- heavy breathing or asphyxia

- pain or discomfort in chest

- sickness or discomfort in a stomach

- giddiness

- hyperhidrosis

- trembling

- fever or shivering

- feeling of numbness (paresthesia)

- feeling of unreality of everything happening around or own change (derealization/ depersonalization)

- fear to lose control or go mad

- fear

The first panic attack…

A patient usually tries to connect the first panic attack with recently happened event or unpleasant emotion. Panic attacks, as a rule, have tendency to repeat, they happen more often with the time and it is impossible to find real reasons for their development already. Since panic attack is extremely unpleasant and frightened state for a patient, constant fear to get them again is added to panic attacks.

These often attacks with frightened symptoms become the reason for a fear to certain situations, for example, when an individual stays alone, visits different places ( shops, cinemas, theatres) or is in public conveyances, lifts. At that on one hand, a person, who suffers from panic attacks, is afraid to be in an awkward situation and discover his disorder before other people, and on the other hand he is frightened by impossibility to get an acute care.

Panic disorders consequences.

Often panic attacks happen in situations when a patient is afraid of their appearance himself.

Feeling a fear to panic attacks people start to escape situations and places where these attacks may occur, for example, public conveyances, lifts, shops and so on.

Often this leads to a social isolation, disability and significant decrease in quality of life. Presence of sudden uncontrolled attacks of fear, thoughts about severe disease, that is impossible to treat, may naturally result in developing of depression. Thereby, the majority of patients have a depression along with panic disorder.

Fears and depression, conditioned by panic disorder, are often mollified by alcohol and medical preparation, incorrect use of which may result in dependence.

Remember, that it is harder to treat panic disorder if there is an alcoholic dependence.

The treatment of panic disorder is as more effective as earlier it starts.

Detection of the panic disorder essence and use of new medicaments have widened medical possibilities in treatment of this disease very much. 80% of patients with panic disorder are successfully treated if they get a professional medical care in time. The aim of treatment is panic attacks removal, normalization of the mood and rehabilitation of a valuable life. The best results are seen while combined treatment of panic disorder when drugs use goes with psychotherapy. Panic disorder treatment is a long term process and it may last from several months to several years depending on degree of difficulty of the disease. Recommencement of the disease may result in premature cessation of the treatment.

If you have a sudden fear or panic….

…If you have a sudden fear or panic, accompanied with tachycardia, lack of air and giddiness;

…You are afraid that something may happen to you during such attack;

…You are afraid that similar attacks may repeat suddenly;

…You put off your business and meetings because of the fear of panic attack,

You might be suffering from a panic disorder. Consult your doctor. He should help you.