Panic Attack

You are sitting at your desk minding your own business, when out of the blue a dreadful feeling rises out of your chest into your throat. Your heart is racing. You can't breathe. You sweat, shake, and get dizzy. As you clutch your chair to steady yourself, you think, "What's going on? Am I going crazy?" The answer is you are having a panic attack. You're not alone. About 2% of the American population has them too.

Almost everyone feels anxious at times. Anxiety is a common experience, particularly as a response to life stresses. However, severe and uncontrollable anxiety can become a disabling condition if your panic attacks occur too frequently. Studies indicated that nearly 20% of men and 30% of women will develop some type of anxiety disorder and experience a panic attack during their lifetime. According to census estimates, nearly 20 million American adults have experienced an anxiety disorder or panic attack in their lifetime.

A panic attack may involve such a high degree of anxiety that the person affected feels as if he or she can't breathe, is having a heart attack, or losing control. Other typical panic attack symptoms include sensations of tingling, ringing in the ears, trembling sensations, or feelings of choking, sweating, chest pain, or heart pounding.

Many individuals experience panic attacks that awaken them from sleep. These are called nocturnal panic attacks. In any given year, 30% to 40% of the general population will have a panic attack. Fortunately, most of these individuals will not go on to develop panic disorder, which has a lifetime prevalence of only 3.5%. Of those who do develop panic disorder, many experience agoraphobia too, which is fear of situations or places where a panic attack may occur or from which escape may be difficult in the event of a panic attack.

As an example, people with agoraphobia often avoid being outside alone, going to supermarkets, traveling in trains or airplanes, crossing bridges, climbing to heights, going through tunnels, crossing open spaces, and riding in elevators. Agoraphobia takes a toll not only on those afflicted, but on their friends and loved ones, who often are called upon to accompany them on everyday tasks and errands.

This site fills an important need for those affected by panic attacks as well as their family and friends and anyone else who simply wants to better understand this common and sometimes disabling condition. For anyone who may be suffering from panic attacks, on the bright side there are extremely effective panic attack treatments available, making it one of the success stories of modern medicine.