I’ve been talking about panic attacks a lot, often quoting anxiety or stress as one of the root causes. It would be helpful at this point to define the different terms and establish the proper relationship between panic attacks and anxiety.

What is a Panic Attack?

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a panic attack as:

an episode of intense fear or apprehension that is of sudden onset.

Others equate a panic attack and an anxiety attack as being the same thing.

Definition of Anxiety:

Even though a toddler might know what anxiety is (well probably not, but who knows these days!) it’s still educational to consider what the official definitions of anxiety are. Princeton WordNet(R) defines anxiety in the context of psychiatry as:

a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic.

Panic attacks are considered a subset of anxiety related afflictions.

The Relationship between Panic Attacks and Anxiety

What is conclusively established by authoritative research is that panic attacks almost always have anxiety as one of their root causes, but the reverse is not true: anxiety is not always accompanied by panic attacks. Everyone is affected by anxiety once in a while. As long as it doesn’t become chronic it should not affect your life to the extent panic attacks do. We can appreciate why this is the case, if we consider the differences between panic attacks and anxiety.

Differences between Panic Attacks and Anxiety

A panic attack is sudden and violent in its intensity. Almost all sufferers describe the feeling as morbid dread accompanied with extreme physical conditions similar to having a heart attack. It’s important to understand that this has nothing to do with the person’s heart condition. Rather, it’s a result of an adrenaline rush in response to a stressful “fight/flight” situation. Panic attacks are usually short lived and are on average between 30 minutes and 15 seconds in duration. Anxiety is a more gradual and ever-present condition. Even when chronic, it doesn’t occur suddenly. It grows slowly in intensity and can be perceived by the person as he/she becomes aware of it over time.

Dealing with Panic Attacks

Once we understand the difference between panic attacks and anxiety, and the fact that anxiety often leads to panic attacks, we can use this knowledge to better cope with panic attacks and in the long run, stop them from happening.

Download my free report “No Panic No More” to learn how I overcame my panic attacks after 3 years of agony.

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