Panic Attacks: No Need To Fear

A panic attack can be very scary, especially to those who are having one for the first time, reports Dr. Mallika Marshall on The Saturday Early Show.

The physical symptoms include a pounding heart, shortness of breath, sweating nausea and the feeling that you are losing all control of the environment around you. Some people even feel like they are going to die. Panic attacks, as you may imagine, can severely impact the quality of a person's life. Many who suffer from them have a hard time at their jobs and difficulty maintaining relationships. Panic attacks can also come on at very unexpected times.

We are not exactly sure what causes panic attacks. But there are several theories. Some experts believe they are caused by an imbalance of brain chemicals that control information processing.

Studies estimate that panic attacks may affect as many as 4 percent of the U.S. population. Interestingly, women are about twice as likely to suffer from panic attacks, and studies have shown that panic attacks may run in the family. Also, many people will have their first panic attack in their mid-20s. That said, a panic attack can happen at any age.

If you've had more than one attack that has interfered with your life, it is very important that you contact your physician as soon as possible, because panic attacks are treatable.

Here are some of the treatment options:

BENZODIAZEPINES
This is a class of drugs that includes Valium and Xanax. What they do is bring rapid relief to the anxious feelings that panic attack sufferers experience. Often they are used during the first few weeks of therapy until antidepressants have a chance to kick in. With these drugs, there is the risk that a patient will become overly dependent on them. There is also the risk that the drugs will stop working after a time because the patient will become tolerant to the effects.

ANTIDEPRESSANTS
Antidepressants are the primary type of drug used to treat panic attacks. The class of antidepressants most commonly used is called SSRIs or Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors. You may have heard of some of these drugs like Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft. The downside to these drugs, as far as treating panic attacks, is that they can take a few weeks to kick in, which is why your doctor may first have you take a drug like Valium, which works very quickly.

COGNITIVE THERAPY
This type of therapy does not involve drugs. What happens is the doctor or therapist will teach the patient that the panic attack is a temporary thing and won't kill them. The patient will also learn about what triggers the attacks, and ways they can better manage them if they come on.

BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
With this form of therapy, the doctor will gradually expose the patient to the things that set off the panic attack. The patient also learns how to use special breathing techniques as a way to avoid anxiety.