What are Panic Attacks? How Anxiety and Panic Attacks Develop

You’ve probably heard the term panic attack or used it yourself. Most likely, you’ve used it interchangeable with words such as anxiety or fear. In fact, these three things are different. They are all related.

 

Panic is a form of fear coupled with anxiety. Fear is the physiological adrenaline based response that occurs in the brain when faced with a serious threat or danger. This is the fight or flight response. For example, if you were faced with an armed robber, you would experience intense fear. You may freeze and not know what to do or you may try to run from the situation or fight off the robber.

 

Anxiety is different from fear. Fear is present focused. You are terrified in the moment. Anxiety, on the other hand, entails worrying about future disasters. Anxiety is often characterized by “what if?” thinking in which you become nervous about all the potential negative future consequences.

 

Panic entails both of these elements, fear and anxiety.

 

During a panic attack, your body experiences the adrenaline rush of fear. When someone is in a state of panic, they have heightened physical responses (heart rate and respiratory increases, sweating, chills, etc.) and their brain functioning shifts. Activity in the prefrontal cortex (responsible for strategic thinking and planning) decreases and instead the brain gets focused on what to do right now. This tunnel vision can create problems because it leads people to making snap decisions.

 

People who experience panic disorder also have anxiety because they worry about having future panic attacks. They therefore avoid situations that they think may trigger a panic attack.

 

When people are in a state of panic, it is hard for them to see that the situation may change. On the crunch days, they see ongoing doom and are depressed and fearful, and they overlook the possibilities of an upswing. On the up days, they are hopeful and elated, and overlook the possibility of a downturn. This is why it is like being on an emotional roller coaster.

 

The good news is that panic attacks are not dangerous. They are similar to a false alarm: your body believes that there is something dangerous and responds with fear. In reality, the danger is typically not a true threat. It may be an upsetting thought, a bodily sensation, or a situation. Treatment for panic attacks works very well, and is typically a form of cognitive behavioral therapy.

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