By, Michel J. Gimeno, M.D.

Theodore was a 44 year old, successful insurance rep, happily married for the past 20 years who always considered himself a well adjusted man. One summer day while on his way to visit a client something happened that affected the course of his entire life. All of a sudden he felt dizzy, his heart started racing a hundred miles a minute, his hands began to sweat and he felt extremely fearful.

"I must be having a heart attack," he thought to himself. Somehow, he managed to drive himself to the emergency room of the nearest local hospital. He was admitted and received a thorough physical examination. All the test results were normal; he was told he was in perfect health and sent home. Exhausted from his ordeal, he took a week's vacation and then went back to work. For the next five or 6 months, everything was fine. Then suddenly, the same thing happened again, though this time his symptoms were even stronger than they had been the first time. He thought he was going to die.

After a while his symptoms subsided and he called his family doctor who again admitted him to the hospital to run more tests. Again, everything was fine; the doctors said it was his nerves and gave him a prescription of a minor tranquilizer and told him to take is easy for awhile. (That is certainly easier said than done in the fast pace world we live in today.) Unfortunately for Theodore his attacks continued. Eventually they were diagnosed as panic attacks.

Spontaneous panic attacks, such as Theodore experienced, defy any logical explanation. Just as a blitzkrieg lays siege to a city, panic attacks seem to come out of nowhere and strike with incredible force. In a matter of seconds your blood pressure rises, your pulse rate increases, your heart starts to beat rapidly, and your breathing becomes shallow. You think you are having a heart attack. You feel as if you are going to die.

However, it is your mind and not your heart that is responsible for this barrage of feelings. You will not die from panic attacks, but they are extremely disruptive, disabling, and unnerving. Just like a heart attack, they can dramatically alter the lifestyle you have worked years to establish.

Because panic attacks so closely mimic the presenting symptoms of a heart attack, it is crucial to first determine the cause of the distress. (Obviously trained medical personnel are best able to make this determination.)

Panic attacks and anxiety disorders are far more common than previously thought. In fact, nearly 15% of U.S. adults are affected by them at some point during their lifetime; like an equal opportunity employer, they can affect anyone regardless of age, sex, intellectual ability or economic status. While some people experience panic attacks infrequently other are plagued with them for years.

However, with proper diet, exercise, specific stress-management techniques, imagery, therapy, and even medication, panic attacks can be diminished in both their frequency and intensity.

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