Information and facts on Panic Attacks

 

Women may experience changes in the menstrual cycle and increased premenstrual symptoms. Panic attacks are usually abrupt and intense. They can occur at any time of the day or night, and can last from a few seconds up to half an hour. To the panic sufferer, it often feels as though they are much longer. A person having a panic attacks often believes that he or she is experiencing a heart attack or a stroke. The attacks themselves are very unpredictable; some people experience one every few weeks, while others may have several a day. They are often triggered by stress (conscious or unconscious) or certain emotions, but may also occur in response to certain foods, drugs, or illness. Food allergies and hypoglycemia are both common among people with this disorder, and can promote panic attacks. An attack may follow ingestion or overindulgence in caffeine based stimulants such as tea or coffee. Some attacks occur with no apparent cause. The unpredictability of the attacks makes them even more distressing. Many people with acute anxiety disorder become fearful of being alone and of visiting public places because they fear having a panic attack. Of course, this only adds to the level of anxiety and leads to their lives being abnormally restricted. For years, panic attacks were dismissed as a psychosomatic phenomenon. However, repeated studies have shown that this disorder has a real, physical basis. Many experts believe that panic attacks are caused principally by a malfunction in brain chemistry, wherein the brain sends and receives false "emergency signals." Hyperactivity in certain areas of the brain causes the release of norepinephrine, which causes the pulse, blood pressure, and breathing to become more rapid-the classic symptoms of a panic attack. Chronic anxiety is a milder, more generalized form of this disorder. Many people feel a vague sense of anxiety much of the time, but the intensity of the feeling does not reach the levels of those in an actual panic attack. They may feel chronically uneasy, especially in the presence of other people, and tend to startle easily. Headaches and chronic fatigue are common among people with this form of the disorder. Generalized anxiety disorder can begin at any age, but the onset typically occurs in one's twenties or thirties. Some people with chronic anxiety disorder also suffer from occasional panic attacks. The proper nutritional supplementation with careful diet and other changes listed below should help reduce or prevent panic attacks and related health problems.

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