A Panic attack is an intense feeling of fear, a feeling of impending doom. Sufferers may feel that they are going crazy or that they are on the verge of a heart attack. Panic attacks may feel terrifying at the time, but they are not dangerous, they are just a flow of adrenalin surging through your body. Adrenalin is the cause of the symptoms you feel, like dizziness, racing heart, feelings of unreality, feeling out of control, hyperventilation and many others.
You may feel like you will collapse or faint, but you will not. As you can see no reason for these feelings, you presume something terrible will happen if you don't make a quick exit. This is the reason that panic attacks can terrify people, as they have no idea why they feel like this. They may blame it on the place they were at the time, a cafe or maybe the cinema.
There have been many studies carried out about the cause of panic disorders and although the results are still inconclusive, in my experience and the studies of others, the main cause is due to a prolonged feeling of worry and stress. The worry cup fills up over time until it overflows and manifests itself into a full blown panic attack. There can be other factors like a childhood event, emotional or physical abuse or, as in my case, substance withdrawal. But whatever the cause, recovery from any form of panic is possible with the right help and support.
The scary part for most people is that these feelings of panic don’t seem to come when they are in a situation of danger, these feelings can come at any time of the day for no apparent reason. Unfortunately, what can keep people in the cycle of panic is the fear of having another attack and the avoidance that can go with it. They may have an attack of panic while driving and then associate driving with panic, thus avoiding getting back behind the wheel. In a few cases, people may retreat indoors as they believe that by doing this, they can avoid all the situations that may bring on an attack of panic
