The
oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear.
H.P. Lovecraft
This disorder presents as episodes of spontaneous, intense
and acute anxiety lasting from a few minutes to several hours called
panic attacks. The cause of the anxiety is not always obvious and there
is no precipitating trigger. Such attacks can occur occasionally or
several times in succession exhibiting some or all of the following
symptoms.
v
Palpitations
of the heart.
v
Pain in the chest.
v
Sensations of chocking.
v
Hot and cold flashes.
v
Difficulty breathing.
v
Depersonalisation - feeling as though one is outside of
the body.
v
Tingling sensations and numbness in hands.
v
Feeling dizzy.
v
Feeling nauseous
v
Sweating.
v
Muscle cramps.
The
first two symptoms may cause the sufferer to think that he or she is having a
heart attack.
Sufferers of other anxiety disorders may experience
panic attacks however such attacks may be precipitated as a result of the
symptoms of the particular disorder when the sufferer is confronted with his or
her fear. For instance when an arachnophobic sees a spider he or she may
experience some of the symptoms listed above. Also panic disorder may exist co
morbidly with any anxiety disorder in particular Agoraphobia.
The experience is indeed terrifying especially in
the first instance one may feel as though one has a serious illness or
is having a heart attack. (However before diagnosing panic attacks tests
should always be carried out to ascertain that the person is not in fact
having a heart attack or is suffering from an illness with similar
manifestations) In addition the sufferer may feel as though he or she is going
mad and may fear losing control or even that he or she is dying. After a
few episodes the sufferer may live in fear and anticipation of another
attack and may avoid places or situations were previous attacks have
occurred.
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