5 Reasons For Panic Attacks

Panic attacks are very intense and debilitating experiences. The symptoms are very severe in nature and completely shake up a person. When a person is struck by a panic attack, it comes all of a sudden without any pre-warning and the body goes into overdrive.

The person will see his heart pounding, feel chest pain, perspire immensely, feel dizzy, shaky and unsteady and all these symptoms make the person believe that it could be a heart attack or something while it is not so. The symptoms last for around 10 minutes and then slowly the attack fades away. There can be different reasons for having a panic attack. 5 important reasons that could cause a panic attack are listed below.

1) It is generally believed that if there is someone in a family who suffers from panic attacks, then it is quite possible that his children and the following generations might also face the problem. This means to say that hereditary factory or genetics could be a reason for panic attacks. This is one reason doctors consider that causes panic attacks but are not very sure about it.

2) Problems, stress, trauma and abuse faced in childhood could also be responsible for panic attacks. People who come from unhealthy backgrounds and slums where they have grown up with lot of infighting, physical and mental abuse and drugs could fall prey to panic attacks as mentally, they have deep rooted memories of stress, trauma and accumulated negativity. Once again, this need not be the case with every person. Many people are there who come from such backgrounds have never faced a panic attack.

3) Persons suffering from certain medical conditions such as mitral valve prolapse, hyperthyroidism, hypoglycemia, or those who consume caffeine products and cocaine are also considered to be prone to panic attacks. Hence it is necessary that one must always abstain from smoking, tobacco and alcohol and others drugs of abuse. A panic attack can also be the result of side-effects of certain strong anti-depressants or withdrawal symptoms caused by certain medicines.

4) Panic attacks can also be common in people who have certain character traits such as being too over-conscious of how they look, what others think and perceive about them, or are always trying for perfection and feel low when they do not match up to their own set standards as the common thing in all these people is that they live in stress and anxiety almost all the time. So, possibilities of them being attacked by panic disorders are higher.

5) Lastly but not the least, the reason which could be considered the most important one would be fear of having a panic attack. A person who has already faced a panic attack is quite likely to carry a hidden fear within him of facing another panic attack. At times, the level of fear reaches huge proportions and ends in another panic attack. This becomes a viscous cycle. There are certain people who develop a phobia against the circumstances in which they had their first panic attack. It could be a crowded market place, or in an elevator. So, whenever they come across similar situations, the fear within keeps creeping up and could cause another panic attack.

With proper behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, yoga and meditation practice by taking the help of professionals and experts, one can overcome the causes of a panic attack and bring a stop to them.