Symptoms of Panic attack

Symptoms of Panic attack

The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Panic attack includes the 58 symptoms listed below:

• Inexplicable fear symptoms:
  • Panic
  • Intense fear
  • Terror
• General descriptions of how a panic attack feels (or common thoughts during a panic attack):
  • Feeling out of control
  • Feeling like you're losing control
  • Feeling like you're going crazy
  • Feeling like you're out of your mind
  • Feeling like you're having a heart attack
  • Feeling sure you are going to die
  • Feeling sure that something "bad" will happen
  • Feeling like you're going to pass out
  • Feeling of unreality
  • Detachment
  • Urge to flee
  • Fear of losing control
  • Fear of dying
• Example sequence of symptom events in a panic attack:
  • Anxiety about something
  • Feeling that "something bad is going to happen"
  • Sudden fear resulting from that thought (or fear that you are going to have an attack)
  • Fight-or-flight reaction sets in (i.e. adrenaline rush)
  • Rush feeling (as adrenaline kicks in due to fear)
  • Feeling of "what is this rush" (vicious cycle of fear)
  • Feeling like out of control
  • Full-blown panic
• Changes to the pulse or heartbeat:
  • Racing heartbeat
  • Pounding heartbeat
  • Skipping heartbeat
  • Heart palpitations
• Chest pain
• Chest pressure
• Chest discomfort
• Changes to breathing:
  • Breathlessness
  • Hyperventilation - hyperventilation can be both a symptom and a trigger for a panic attack
  • Choking sensation
  • Breathing difficulty
  • Overbreathing
  • Rapid breathing
  • Lump in your throat
  • Throat tightness
• Excessive sweating
• Lightheadedness
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Stomach problems
• Tingling
• Numbness
• Chills
• Hot flashes
• Shaking
• Trembling
• Leg weakness
• Jelly legs
• Fainting-like symptoms - not true fainting from low blood pressure (panic attacks actually raise blood pressure) but often perceived or described as fainting
• more information...»

Research symptoms & diagnosis of Panic attack:

• Overview -- Panic attack
• Diagnostic Tests for Panic attack
• Home Diagnostic Testing
• Complications -- Panic attack
• Doctors & Specialists
• Misdiagnosis and Alternative Diagnoses
• Hidden Causes of Panic attack
• Other Causes -- causes of these or similar symptoms

Panic attack: Complications

Read information about complications of Panic attack.

Research More About Panic attack

Do I have Panic attack?

• Panic attack: Introduction
• Panic attack: Diagnostic Testing to confirm diagnosis
• Home Diagnostic Testing
• Alternative diagnoses and misdiagnosis for Panic attack
• Failure to Diagnose Panic attack
• Hidden Causes of Panic attack
• Treatments for Panic attack
• More about Panic attack

Panic attack: Medical Mistakes

• Concentration -- Health Mistakes
• ADHD -- Health Mistakes
• ADHD (Adults) -- Health Mistakes
• Depression -- Health Mistakes
• Bipolar -- Health Mistakes
• Sleep Disorders -- Health Mistakes
• more mistakes...»

Panic attack: Undiagnosed Conditions

Diseases that may be commonly undiagnosed in related medical areas:

• Brain & Neurological Disorders: Undiagnosed:
  • Adult ADHD -- Undiagnosed - Often remains undiagnosed through to adulthood.
  • ADHD -- Undiagnosed
  • Alzheimer Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Migraine -- Undiagnosed
  • Concentration Disorders -- Undiagnosed
  • Stroke -- Undiagnosed
  • Bipolar Disorder -- Undiagnosed
  • Schizophrenia -- Undiagnosed
  • Epilepsy -- Undiagnosed
• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical tests related to Panic attack:

• Child Behavior: Home Testing
  • ADHD -- Home Test Kits
  • Concentration -- Home Testing
• Mental Health (Adults): Home Testing
  • Adult ADHD -- Home Testing
  • Concentration -- Home Tests
• Mental Health: Home Testing:
  • Home Emotional Stress Tests
  • ADHD -- Home Testing
  • Concentration -- Home Test Kits
• Brain & Neurological Disorders: Related Home Testing:
  • ADHD -- Home Tests
  • Drug Screening Kits
• more home tests...»

Wrongly Diagnosed with Panic attack?

The list of other diseases or medical conditions that may be on the differential diagnosis list of alternative diagnoses for Panic attack includes:

• Heart attack
• Anxiety attack
• Other causes of panic or anxiety
• Mitral valve prolapse
• Anxiety attack
• more diagnoses...»

See the full list of 13 alternative diagnoses for Panic attack

Panic attack: Research Doctors & Specialists

• Mental Health Specialists:
  • Psychiatry (Mental Health)
  • Addiction Psychiatry
  • Geriatric Psychiatry (Seniors Mental Health)
  • Pediatric / Adolescent Psychiatry (Child/Teen Mental Health)
  • Pediatric Developmental Behavioral Health (Child Behavior Specialist)
  • Psychosomatic Medicine
  • Forensic Psychiatry
• more specialists...»

Research all specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.

More about symptoms of Panic attack:

More information about symptoms of Panic attack and related conditions:

• Other diseases with similar symptoms and common misdiagnoses
• Tests to determine if these are the symptoms of Panic attack
• Symptoms that may be caused by complications of Panic attack
• Underlying causes of Panic attack
• Associated conditions for Panic attack
• Risk factors for Panic attack

Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms

Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions, or drug side effect causes of that symptom.

• Anxiety about something - see all causes of Anxiety
• Breathing difficulty - see all causes of Breathing difficulties
• Breathlessness - see all causes of Shortness of breath
• Chest discomfort - see all causes of Chest discomfort
• Chest pain - see all causes of Chest pain
• Chest pressure - see all causes of Chest pressure
• Chills - see all causes of Chills
• Choking sensation - see all causes of Choking
• Detachment - see all causes of Detachment
• Dizziness - see all causes of Dizziness
• Excessive sweating - see all causes of Excessive sweating
• Fainting-like symptoms - see all causes of Fainting
• Fear of dying - see all causes of Fear
• Fear of losing control - see all causes of Fear
• Feeling of unreality - see all causes of Mania
• Heart palpitations - see all causes of Palpitations
• Hot flashes - see all causes of Hot flashes
• Hyperventilation - see all causes of Hyperventilation
• Intense fear - see all causes of Fear
• Jelly legs - see all causes of Leg symptoms
• Leg weakness - see all causes of Leg weakness
• Lightheadedness - see all causes of Dizziness
• Lump in your throat - see all causes of Throat symptoms
• Nausea - see all causes of Nausea
• Numbness - see all causes of Numbness
• Overbreathing - see all causes of Breathing symptoms
• Panic - see all causes of Panic
• Pounding heartbeat - see all causes of Pounding heartbeat
• Racing heartbeat - see all causes of Rapid heart beat
• Rapid breathing - see all causes of Rapid breathing
• Shaking - see all causes of Tremor symptoms
• Skipping heartbeat - see all causes of Rapid heart beat
• Stomach problems - see all causes of Stomach problems
• Terror - see all causes of Fear
• Tingling - see all causes of Tingling
• Trembling - see all causes of Tremor symptoms
• Urge to flee - see all causes of Panic

Medical Books Online about Panic attack

Medical Books Excerpts Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Panic attack are available from published medical books for more detailed information about Panic attack.

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

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Symptoms of Panic attack: Online Medical Books

16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE! Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration, for more information about the symptoms of Panic attack.

Generalized anxiety disorder: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Generalized anxiety disorder can begin at any age but typically has an onset in the 20s and 30s. Psychological or physiologic symptoms of anxiety states vary with the degree of anxiety. Mild anxiety mainly causes psychological symptoms, with unusual self-awareness and alertness to the environment. Moderate anxiety leads to selective inattention but with the ability to concentrate on a single task. Severe anxiety causes an inability to concentrate on more than scattered details of a task. A panic state with acute anxiety causes a complete loss of concentration, typically with unintelligible speech.

Physical examination of the patient with generalized anxiety disorder may reveal signs or symptoms of motor tension, including trembling, muscle aches and spasms, headaches, and an inability to relax. Autonomic signs and symptoms include shortness of breath, tachycardia, sweating, and abdominal complaints.

In addition, the patient may startle easily and complain of feeling apprehensive, fearful, or angry. There may also be difficulty concentrating, eating, and sleeping. The medical, psychiatric, and psychosocial histories fail to identify a specific physical or environmental cause of the anxiety.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Panic disorder: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

The patient with panic disorder typically complains of repeated episodes of unexpected apprehension, fear or, rarely, intense discomfort. These panic attacks may last for minutes or hours and leave the patient shaken, fearful, and exhausted. They occur several times a week, sometimes even daily. Because the attacks occur spontaneously, without exposure to a known anxiety-producing situation, the patient generally worries between attacks about when the next episode will occur.

Physical examination of the patient during a panic attack may reveal signs of intense anxiety, such as hyperventilation, tachycardia, trembling, and profuse sweating. He may also complain of difficulty breathing, digestive disturbances, and chest pain.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Anxiety disorder, generalized: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

Generalized anxiety disorder can begin at any age but typically has an onset between ages 20 and 40. It’s equally common in men and women. Psychological or physiologic symptoms of anxiety states vary with the degree of anxiety. Mild anxiety mainly causes psychological symptoms, with unusual self-awareness and alertness to the environment. Moderate anxiety leads to selective inattention but with the ability to concentrate on a single task. Severe anxiety causes an inability to concentrate on more than scattered details of a task. A panic state with acute anxiety causes a complete loss of concentration, often with unintelligible speech.

Physical examination of the patient with generalized anxiety disorder may reveal symptoms of motor tension, including trembling, muscle aches and spasms, headaches, and an inability to relax. Autonomic signs and symptoms include shortness of breath, tachycardia, sweating, and abdominal complaints.

In addition, the patient may startle easily and complain of feeling apprehensive, fearful, or angry and of having difficulty concentrating, eating, and sleeping. The medical, psychiatric, and psychosocial histories fail to identify a specific physical or environmental cause of the anxiety.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003

Panic disorder: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

The symptoms of panic disorder are intensely uncomfortable. The patient with panic disorder typically complains of repeated episodes of unexpected apprehension, fear, and intense discomfort. These panic attacks may last for minutes or hours and leave the patient shaken, fearful, and exhausted. They occur several times a week, sometimes daily. Because the attacks occur spontaneously, without exposure to a known anxiety-producing situation, the patient commonly worries between attacks about when the next episode will occur.

Physical examination of the patient during a panic attack may reveal signs of intense anxiety, such as hyperventilation, tachycardia, trembling, and profuse sweating. He may also complain of difficulty breathing, digestive disturbances, and chest pain.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003

Panic attack as a Cause of Symptoms or Medical Conditions

When considering symptoms of Panic attack, it is also important to consider Panic attack as a possible cause of other medical conditions. The Disease Database lists the following medical conditions that Panic attack may cause:

• Dizzyness
• Hyperhidrosis
• Hyperventilation
• Sinus tachycardia

Panic attack as a symptom:

For a more detailed analysis of Panic attack as a symptom, including causes, drug side effect causes, and drug interaction causes, please see our Symptom Center information for Panic attack.

Symptom statistics for Panic attack:

The following are statistics from various sources about the symptoms of Panic attack or signs of Panic attack:

• 87% self-reported palpitations (extra heartbeats) in panic attacks¹
• 82% self-reported fear of loss of control symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 71% self-reported dizziness or fainting-like symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 64% self-reported sweating symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 62% self-reported breathing difficulty symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 49% self-reported detachment with reality type symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 44% self-reported fear of dying type symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 42% self-reported paresthesia/tingling/numbness symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 33% self-reported nausea or abdominal symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 33% self-reported "going crazy" type symptoms in panic attacks¹
• 18% self-reported "choking" type symptoms in panic attacks¹
• more statistics...»

Medical articles and books on symptoms:

These general reference articles may be of interest in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:

• Diagnostic Testing for a Diagnosis of Panic attack
• Research Alternative Diagnoses for Panic attack
• More about Panic attack
• Online Diagnosis
• Self Diagnosis Pitfalls
• Pitfalls of Online Diagnosis
• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Lesser known silent killer diseases
• Books on signs and symptoms

Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis

About signs and symptoms of Panic attack:

The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Panic attack. This signs and symptoms information for Panic attack has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of Panic attack signs or Panic attack symptoms. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Panic attack may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed Panic attack symptoms.