Fear...heart palpitations...terror, a sense of impending doom...dizziness...fear of fear. The words used to describe panic disorder are often frightening. But there is great hope: Treatment can benefit virtually eveyone who has this condition. It is extremely important for the person who has panic disorder to learn about the problem and the availability of effective treatments and to seek help.
In panic disorder, brief episodes of intese fear are accompanied by multiple symptoms (such as heart palpitations and dizziness) that occur repeatedly and unexpectedly in the absence of any external threat. These "panic attacks," which are the hallmark of panic disorder, are believed to occur whn the brain's normal mechanism for reacting to threat--the so called "fight or flight" response--becomes inappropriately aroused. Most people with panic disorder also feel anxious about the possibility of having another panic attack and avoid situations in which they believe these attacks are likely to occur. Anxiety about another attack, the the avoidance it causes, can lead to disability in panic disorder.
During a panic attack, some or all of the following symptoms occur: terror--a sense that something unimaginably horrible is about to happen and one is powerless to prevent it; racing or pounding hearbeat, chest pain, dizziness, lightheadness, nausea, difficulty breathing, tingling or numbness in the hands, flushes or chills, sense of unreality, fear of losing control, going "crazy," or doing something embarassing, and the fear of dying.
American Psychiatric Association
Government WebsiteGet free publications on mental disorders.
National Panic/Anxiety Disorders News
Anxiety Disorders Association of America
© March 2000kimberlyrogers2000@yahoo.com
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