What can cause Panic Attacks
A panic attack is the sudden onset of intense anxiety, characterized by feelings of intense fear and apprehension and accompanied by heart palpitations, shortness of breath, sweating, trembling plus several other symptoms. It is not understood what the cause of panic attacks is but several things could play a role including a combination of factors like biological and environmental.
Experts have looked at genetics for a possible cause for panic attacks in some people. In the same way that hair or eye color is passed down by one or both parents, a panic disorder has also been shown to run in families. It might be that a person is predisposed to having these attacks. Some panic attack sufferers have been shown to have a family member who has or had a panic disorder or some other emotional disorder like depression.
Another possible biological cause for panic attacks could be abnormalities in the brain. A panic disorder can be the result of certain changes in the way that parts of the brain function. Recent studies have suggested that panic attacks often co-occur with psychotic disorders like schizophrenia or post traumatic stress disorder. It is also possible that psychotic symptoms may lead to panic attacks. Psychotic episodes may precede or predict the onset of specific anxiety disorders as well like post traumatic stress disorder. Some research also suggests that your body’s natural fight-or-flight response to danger is involved in panic attacks. The bodies natural alarm system is a set of mental and physical mechanisms that allows a person to respond to a threat such as an accelerated heart rate and an increased breathing pattern. During a panic attack, these feelings are triggered unnecessarily when there is no danger. It is unknown why a panic attack occurs when there’s no obvious danger present.
Major life stress in some cases may be a cause of panic attacks as well. Stress may come in the form of a stressful event or a major life transition like the death or separation of a loved one. Some researchers have found that in these cases, when stresses lower your resistance, the underlying physical predisposition kicks in and may trigger an attack.
An environmental cause of panic attacks might be seen through an addiction. The intoxication or withdrawal of drugs or alcohol due to substance abuse can also possibly contribute to a panic disorder in an individual as well. Biological and environmental causes of a panic disorder might sometimes work together. Typically, attacks come out of the blue. But, eventually the sufferer might bring them on themselves by responding to physical symptoms associated with an attack. For example, if a person suffering from a panic disorder experiences a racing heartbeat caused by an outside source like taking a certain medication, they might interpret this as a symptom of an attack. They might bring on an attack because of their anxiety since a lot of the fear associated with an attack is fear of having another panic attack. Since the exact cause of panic disorders are not fully understood, it is important to seek treatment through several different forms of therapy.
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