For a number of people, dealing with life’s stresses career changes, moving, maternity, loss of somebody close etc., don’t result to anxiety and panic attacks. Nevertheless, to those who are susceptible to emotional tension, those circumstances might end in panic attacks even if those events happened far if in the life. The reason for this still is not fully understood but it is believed that a huge cause of attacks is long periods of exposure to stress (not just a couple days of tension but by several weeks of constant worrying and unprocessed feelings).
The odds of having an attack are even bigger if a panic-prone person is exposed to unnecessary stress like extra tasks in the workplace or additional responsibility at home. Instead of acting the same under regular circumstance, this added burden may put more burdens which may pave the way to additional stress that can be a catalyst for a panic attack.
What is panic disorder?
It’s commonly believed that panic attacks happen out of the blue, devoid of any purpose however such can happen to anyone at any point within their lives. Most individuals go through a single episode of panic attack, while others however, go on to suffer from panic disorder. Panic disorder is identified by several episodes of panic attacks related to a past experience, current stress (aforementioned) or something entirely different.
Most panic attacks go on for no more than 30 minutes however the effects of panic disorder can leave lasting effects among those afflicted going through emotional tension and excess fear because of the remembrance of previous attacks. This negative memory has a negative blow to both self-confidence as well as self-pride, that could end in the interruption of normal actions along with everyday existence. While the causes of panic disorder vary from person to person, all ailment lead to the following indications:
Anticipatory anxiety or the fear of having future attacks which can have a detrimental effect to the sufferer as they cannot relax and they always feel anxious and tense in between attacks. Phobic avoidance is characterized by avoiding situations or events in the belief that the situation may cause an attack. Phobic avoidance can alternatively be avoiding areas where assistance isn’t available during an emergency situation.
What is agoraphobia?
Agoraphobia is normally believed to have to do with fear of open areas or public areas and literally translated it stands for “fear of the marketplace”, - this condition is currently thought to be a result of panic attacks.
People diagnosed with agoraphobia show different manifestations. Although relative to all agoraphobics the avoidance either being in public places or being alone. This is actually an aspect of phobic avoidance (a defined characteristic of panic disorder), what’s different, however, is that the effects of agoraphobia can significantly hinder the individual’s normal activities. Thus, what sets agoraphobia apart from the standard panic disorder is the number of activities which the individual avoids.
People suffering from the panic disorder usually remain active, although there are certain circumstances that they will tend to avoid but then again, agoraphobics restrict their activities because of terrible notions. Such fearful thoughts could be extremely harmful to the person’s life as well as their relationship to others though no matter what, both ailments are the result of panic attacks. Hence, its always better to understand the things you can take to prevent panic attacks from happening again and getting worse so at the first sign of attack, look for qualified help.
