As there’s more information and talk about anxiety and panic attacks it causes questions whether one has experienced or not. These terms can be quite vague and the article below discusses it in more detail.

Of course, everyone has anxiety.  Anxiety is a vague word meaning any one of several unpleasant emotions, usually involving the anticipation of some misfortune to come.  Stress, as well legitimate worries about every day live, bring about anxiety. 

However, there is a difference between regular anxiety and an anxiety disorder.  Whereas anxiety is simply a negative emotion, an anxiety disorder involves chronic anxiety, usually approaching extreme levels.  Such extreme levels might see an otherwise healthy and normal person become suddenly and irrationally afraid of something, or nervous and irritable, or may cause mild to severe panic attacks.  Panic attacks are simply a peak of anxiety and do not necessarily mean a person is developing a panic disorder, though it is a probability.

A person may also develop an unnatural fear of public places, other people or of specific phobias.  They may constantly feel the need to escape, and feel quite agitated if they feel they are trapped in a situation.  This is linked to agoraphobia, once of many types of anxiety related phobias that can develop.

Anxiety disorders can easily lead to physical symptoms as well as mental and emotional ones.  People suffering from chronic and intense anxiety may also experience nausea, trembling, chills, and lightheadness.  In addition, severe symptoms like chest pains, numbness and a shortness of breath might appear, thus scaring someone into believing they are having a heart attack or even dying. 

What causes an anxiety disorder to develop?  Anxiety, of course—but from what source?  It could due to external surroundings; stress and difficult living situations can be traumatic and can cause a person to feel very anxious throughout the day for a long period of time.  There is also evidence that genetics can cause anxiety disorder to be inherited. 

If you feel that you may have an anxiety disorder then there is cause for concern—the fact that you feel anxious enough to question your wellbeing, means either you are under a lot of stress or feel you may be developing an unnatural fear or reluctance in every day life.  The best thing to do is to consult a family physician.  He or she will give you a physical examination and rule out any physical factors that might be bringing on your symptoms.  If there's no problem there then the doctor could refer you to a mental health specialist who will conduct a further evaluation. 

Traditional medication may be recommended, or psychotherapy could be suggested as an alternative.  One mistake people make is to put off going for an examination because they don't want to be put on medication.  Understandably, since there are many risks involved in potentially addictive antidepressants and anti-anxiety pills, not to mention the rising cost of pharmaceutical drugs.  However, the doctor will work with you and may be willing to treat the problem without medication.  Aside from herbal remedies or self-help techniques psychotherapy has proven successful in many cases.

Avoidance is another symptom of anxiety disorder.  But avoiding a professional examination may be too much of a risk to take, considering that your mental and physical health could be at stake.

I hope this article has been useful for you. As always, if you feel very strongly about anxiety and panic attacks, it’s always good to get in touch with a professional and see whether you have any reason for concern.