can a panic attack cause heart problems...

[Javier T]

...or be deadly no matter how bad the panic is?Can you Die from one? Well I'm 21 years of age and have had a panic attack once. I went to the ER room and they basically told me to calm down and relax and breathe i did that and they let me go. I have been fine for 6 months until the other day I was eating with some friends and a panic attack came on. Now im scared to go to the movies and out to eat. Has anybody else felt like this. Is their ways to calm down or anything that will help me with this, without being on medication. Thanks everyone and God Bless

[Stray]

Panic attacks alone are never deadly. BUT panic attack can cause other problem like stroke heart attack or if you already have problems like asthma. Though you would have to be already prone to things like that for them to happen.

[esmerelda]

Yes, I definitely know what you're talking about - I still have them, rarely, but went through a period where I had them a lot. You won't actually die from a panic attack - it just feels like you're going to..racing heart, sweating, chest pain,numbness, tingling, etc...trust me. I understand. I did take meds for a while, which just made me realize that I wasn't going to die, so I looked into alternative methods. Read up on panic attacks - you will realize you are not alone! (not even close!), and look into acupuncture, chiropractic, meditation, and relaxation. And I have done the er thing - twice - that's how scary these things are!I wish you the best!

[geeg70]

My husband has panic attack too and he's been on medication eversince. He developed the attack when he was in Collge and now he's 37 y.o. and still has it but just occasionally. He can go to the movies or eat on restaurants.. but he's very anxious to be stuck on a traffic or wait in line in groceries or in paying bills or in going to the bank.. he doesnt want long hours of travels and don't want be in closed/cramped spaces. The only thing that has improved his condition aside from taking medications from time to time esp. when he is anticipating an attack or would be exposed to situations where an attack could take place, is by keeping himself busy on something, esp. one that he enjoys doing the most. He engage in sports like badminton.. and pursued his hobby on photography.. now he has less time to think about his condition and just a medicine on his pocket would give him an assurance he would be safe just in case he experience an attack. He said, during the attack he feels like he's going to die or something but I don 't thik it could be that deadly if you will just let it pass and try to stay calm. But then again, he said, you wouldn 't understand it unless you have it. I'm not sure my reply helped you but I just want to share to you my husband's experience. feel free to email me if you want to ask more questions. Good luck.

[Michael C.]

Unless you know the facts, you may mistake the chest pains that normally accompany panic attacks for a heart attack.Every year, thousands of people having chest pain, difficulty breathing, pain or numbness in the left arm and tingling throughout the body end up in a hospital emergency room because they believe they are having a heart attack. Typically, a few tests are run, and the patient is sent home because the nature of the attack he or she experienced is one of panic, not coronary.It’s easy to understand how a panic attack can be mistaken for a heart attack; the two share several common symptoms—with subtle, but recognizable differences. For instance, the chest pain from a heart attack is focused in the center of the chest and is crushing, as if a heavy weight is sitting on top of the chest. It is usually persistent, may radiate to the left arm, neck or back and lasts longer than 5 - 10 minutes. Heart attack victims don’t hyperventilate (unless the person’s fear of heart attack triggers a panic attack), any tingling they experience is usually confined to the left arm, and vomiting is common.During a panic attack, chest pain is localized over the heart and described as “sharp, and comes and goes. The pain usually intensifies with breathing in and out, and pressing on the center of the chest. Panic attack may cause nausea, but vomiting is rare, and if tingling is present, the entire body tingles. Hyperventilation almost always precedes a panic attack. Using deep breathing techniques dispel this and combined with relaxation exercises, other panic attack symptoms disappear in less than 5 minutes. If the location of the pain moves to the center of the chest, doesn’t go away within 10 minutes, is accompanied by more than one incident of vomiting or diarrhea, or goes away and returns a few minutes later, you should immediately get medical attention.Panic attacks don’t cause heart disease, and some experts say that they actually affect the heart similarly to the way cardio exercise does, by causing the release of adrenaline, increasing the heart rate, and expanding blood vessels. On the same note, heart disease doesn’t cause panic attacks, although a person with a history of panic attacks who is actually having a coronary may also panic for fear of worsening the heart damage, dying or being disabled.Using the correct techniques and exercises, you can learn to control panic attack symptoms. I’m one of those with anxiety/panic disorders who have benefited from these practices. I’ve learned to overcome the symptoms of panic attack and differentiate them from heart attack symptoms. It takes practice to control panic attack symptoms, but if you learn to recognize the difference between panic and heart attack signs, and you know that what you’re experiencing is only a panic attack, they’ll be much easier to deal with.If you want to learn more about heart attacks and how to deal with panic attacks, there is a great amount of information on the Internet. Learning the difference between the two kinds of symptoms makes all the difference in how you react to panic attacks!Did you know that every 8 seconds someone in the US has a panic attack? True! And sometimes I’m one of them! How about you?I’ve had panic attacks that have lasted 30+ minutes, and was absolutely certain I was having a heart attack! I couldn’t breathe, I had chest and neck pains, my left arm hurt, yet at the same time was numb; how weird is that?. Although I still feel the symptoms of panic attack coming on, from time to time, I’ve learned how to take control of my thoughts and reactions, and have changed my lifestyle to drastically decrease the chances of panic attack. http://www.thecomputerguynetwork.com/info/Anxiety-Attacks.htmThe link above was how I finally took control of my panic attacks.