Why Do People Have Panic Attacks?

Panic attacks affect millions of people each day. While some are affected by panic attacks on an almost regular basis, others may go through their entire life and say they’ve never experienced a panic attack. How can this be you may wonder? Why do people have panic attacks? Most sufferers probably believe that if they knew “why” they were experiencing these, they’d be able to stop them.

What is a Panic Attack?

A medical definition of a panic attack is when the person suddenly and abruptly experiences a feeling of acute discomfort or intense fear, which is accompanied by many other symptoms. Some of these symptoms may include (but are not limited to) shortness of breath, irregular heartbeats or heart palpitations, tremors, sweating and fear of dying, losing control or literally going crazy. It’s estimated that almost 10 percent of the population have or will experience some sort of panic attack but in only about 5 percent will it develop into a panic attack disorder. People who have never experienced a panic attack usually don’t understand the concern and may even believe they are being over-exaggerated. However, the ones that suffer from panic attacks claim they are the most frightening experience they’ve ever had in their life.

So, Why Do People Have Panic Attacks?

Even doctors don’t know the exact reason why people suffer from panic attacks. More importantly, they don’t know why some do and other don’t. Stress is one thing that doctors feel can contribute to a panic attack. While we all have stress at some time in our life, when it builds it can cause panic in an individual. This panic may completely come out of the blue and manifest itself as panic attack. You’ve all heard that saying, “stress can kill you”. It can definitely cause a panic attack!

Genetics play a part in our ability to deal with stress as well as panic attacks, making some more predisposed to panic attacks than others. Panic attacks or the tendency to develop panic attacks runs in families, with many families having more than one family member that suffers from panic. Although environmental factors do have something to do with panic attacks, genetics also play a part in why people have panic attacks.

Some physical problems that may cause a panic attack include high blood pressure or increased blood pressure rate. High blood pressure may cause the individual to become excitable, which can cause panic. An insufficient supply of certain minerals and vitamins has also been linked to why people have panic attacks. One such mineral is magnesium, which is important for the normal functions of our body.

Thyroid problems also contribute to why people have panic attacks. If the thyroid is overactive, it releases too much of the thyroid hormone, which can lead to irregular heartbeats and increased blood pressure. Both of these problems will cause flushing, sweating and an instant sense of panic or anxiety. Regardless of what the reasons behind panic attacks, to the one experiencing them, they are frightening and can cause many problems in their lives if not taken care of as soon as possible.