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We all no panic related illnesses can be overcome but i must say there are more and more people suffering this terrible treatable illness.
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Why do some people have panic anxiety while others do not? Why do you suddenly experience the most terrible and intense anxiety without any evident causes? Scientists offer various answers to these questions. Psychoanalysists search for traumatic events and disturbances during childhood. Biologically oriented psychiatrists talk about endogenous anxiety, meaning that this can be due to biological imbalance in the body. Behavioural therapists talk about mislearned behavioural patterns, and cognitive therapists say that it is the way we think and perceive the world that is the basis for the symptoms. The behavioural and cognitive views have become more important during the last ten years, since studies have shown that cognitive behavioural therapy has given the best results for persons with panic disorder and agoraphobia.
Thus, there is no clear answer to the question WHY. Maybe a mixture of the different approaches would be closer to the truth. It seems that you can spend all your time on trying to find an answer, and I think that - although it is difficult- right now you should try to care less about "why me" and concentrate more on "what can I do now". For this reason it is good to learn about the different theories about panic anxiety, especially if you want to take part in the choice of treatment, or as a step in understanding the disorder and as part of the recovery. I will try to describe some of the theories, especially CBT, and approaches by psycologists, psychiatrists and therapeutics.
Some persons appear to be born with a very sensitive body alarm system. General anxiety and a hyperreactive nervous system predisposes for panic disorder as well as other types of ... In addition to this biological vulnerability, stress factors may also be very important. The first panic attack often takes place right after a revolutionary event or stress. Examples include death of a close relative, the birth of your child, moving to your own flat, or too much work to handle at the job. Persons who demand a lot from themselves, or have difficulties in setting limits and say "no" eventually become so pressed that it triggers a panic attack. Caffeine in large amounts, alcohol or narcotics, or a too rapid termination of medication with benzodiazepines can also trigger an attack. But a single attack or nervousness for clear reasons, such as giving a public speech, does not count as panic disorder. And the mentioned triggering factors are never causes. It is the person's reaction on the appearing symptoms that start and maintain the disorder. Some persons experience a panic attack after a long period of negative stress, but realize the connection to the stress and stop worrying (but hopefully try to relax). More sensitive persons respond to the symptoms and are frightened. Fear is the the core and the fuel of panic disorder!
One theory is that there is a connection between separation anxiety and panic disorder. Everyone experiences separation anxiety at some point during their childhood. The panic attacks following the death of a close relative, and the fear of being alone, are examples of reactions to separation anxiety.
Another approach concentrates on breathing, assuming that an incorrect breathing technique triggers panic attacks. In danger of suffocation, the body starts all alarm systems, and there might be sensitive persons whose alarms are triggered "unnecessarily". Hyperventilation is another contributing factor (see "Breathing"). I believe that none of these theories can be the only reason for the panic disorder, although they may be contributing.
Today there are several different CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy)-related models to explain appearance of panic disorder. They are all variations of the same ideas and factors. One of the theories present the explanation used above: if sensitive persons experience anxiety symptoms after a period of stress, they misinterpret it as a threat and an evil spiral starts leading to panic disorder. Another theory with the same theme assumes that the panic attacks result from misinterpretations of bodily sensations and reactions, e.g. heart palpitations, dizziness, or strong feelings like anger or exhilaration. The sensations are perceived as strange and more dangerous than they are; for example heart palpitations can be seen as signs of a heart attack. This misinterpretation activates the autonomic nervous system (as in danger) and more bodily sensations are added as a natural effect. If these new symptoms are perceived as threatening, the anxiety will increase even more and you are trapped in an evil circle which triggers the panic attack.
A person who has experienced a panic attack often develops a fear of new attacks, and is very observant of any bodily sensations, which can be misinterpreted as negative, with the risk to trigger a new attack. Expectations such as I am likely to have anxiety now or threats like I must not have anxiety now will probably create anxiety. The bodily sensations were probably not noticed prior to the first panic attack, they passed unnoticed. People with panic disorder are thus very sensitive to bodily sensations and increase their level of anxiety if the feel any changes. Suddenly it becomes difficult to experience overwhelming feelings such as sorrow or anger, and it is important never to be nervous, since these feelings trigger tensions and symptoms that are associated with panic attacks. The panic anxiety has become a phobia for bodily sensations which are associated with anxiety.
Eventually, the reaction can be automatical, and the anxiety is triggered by a certain feeling or change in the body (e.g. that the pulse rate increases while watching TV). This can sometimes explain nightly panic attacks, which occur in the sleep and wake you up, since you are scanning your body for symptoms even while sleeping. Research on the so called dissociation, sort of a "separation from reality", shows that some persons have an ability to induce a "trance" state, i.e. to dissociate. It has been observed that many patients first dissociate and then panic. Once you have dissociated, many different symptoms can appear, such as feelings of unreality, tunnel vision, dizziness and strange bodily sensations. The symptoms or the trance are not harmful, but you are frightened into a panic attack. Most persons who can dissociate have had this ability since childhood (when they did not perceive it as strange). It is easy to go into a trance state, sensitive people can induce this just by staring at something. It can happen when watching TV, working by a computer screen or driving a car staring at the road ahead. Some persons are sensitive to fluorescent lighting. You can interrupt dissociation by stop staring or break the self absorption by telling yourself to stop. You need not have panic or anxiety since it is not dangerous with dissociation.
