Panic Vs Anxiety Attack: Know Causes, Differences, Cure

Sneha Patro Nov 05, 2022

Many people consider panic attack and anxiety attack to be the same. They should know that there is a big difference between panic attack and anxiety. People even get confused in recognising its symptoms. Panic attacks are due to some fear, whereas anxiety attacks are caused due to anxiety or stress.

Both the conditions can be dangerous for the body. Sometimes it becomes so difficult to recognise the attack that the treatment is even delayed. Panic attacks and anxiety attacks directly affect the heart, because of this, the risk of heart attack also increases. Let us know how panic attack and anxiety attack are different from each other.

Chetan Jaiswal, founder and CEO, My Peegu said, "People confuse between panic and anxiety attacks usually because both of them appear to have very similar physiological symptoms such as shortness of breath and sweating commonly. Both of these conditions also have an underlying fear associated with it which makes it difficult for people to differentiate. In layman’s knowledge, a certain amount of anxiety also accounts for panic, thus the terms are used interchangeably colloquially, however, the two differ in clinical terms."

Differences between Panic Attack and Anxiety Attack

Panic attacks occur because of fear, whereas anxiety attacks can be caused by anxiety.
Panic attacks come on suddenly, while anxiety attacks start slowly and intensify.
Anxiety attacks are slightly less dangerous than panic attacks.
During panic attack, a doctor is needed immediately, but the anxiety attack comes slow and sometimes calms down in a short time.

What are the symptoms?

Jaiswal said that, the clinical symptoms of both the conditions are very different. Anxiety attacks are a result of gradual built-up while panic attacks can be more sudden. Anxiety attacks predominantly occur as a result of a trigger, but panic attacks may or may not occur due to a trigger. On the other hand, if seen as an outsider (layman), the physiological symptoms do match up such as: heaviness in the chest, perspiration or difficulty in breathing.

Anxiety Attack - Difficulty in breathing – Increased heartbeat – Chest pain – Vision problems – Difficulty speaking – Pain in the arms or neck.

Panic Attack - Excessive sweating – Difficulty in breathing – Vomiting – Dizziness – Rapid heartbeat – High blood pressure – Chest pain – Tremors – Fear.

What are the treatments?

Apart from medication, you can reduce the symptoms of anxiety and panic attacks by consulting a doctor. For this, you need to change your lifestyle and take special care of some things like diet, thoughts, activity, etc.

"The treatment for both shares a few similarities. Panic attacks and anxiety attacks can be helped
with using deep breathing and reminding that the experience won’t last for long is a common practice. Using sensory based stimuli which are calming is something that helps in panic attacks like the smell of lavender and use of a comforting cool blanket."

In case of severe anxiety attacks, anti-anxiety medication is used for individuals with diagnosis of OCD, GAD etc. prescribed by a qualified medical profession. For panic attacks riding it out is a strategy which is suggested often. Use of creative visualisation, and body scans are also found to be helpful in both the cases. Talking to your anxiety and accepting it and asking for it to leave is also a strategy that helps with anxiety attacks, he said.

Tips to avoid the attacks:

Try to stay positive and let go of negative things that can trigger these attacks.
Know what is it that is triggering you for these attacks. Once detected, you will be able to manage your stress.
Drinking too much alcohol or consuming caffeine can trigger an attack. Therefore, consume these substances in limited quantities.
Eating a healthy and balanced diet can make a difference.
To overcome these symptoms, take at least 6-8 hours of sleep.
Exercise every day to keep your physical and mental health under control.
Involve yourself in different activities to keep your mind calm and avoid these attacks.
Practice breathing exercises, workouts, yoga regularly.
Talk to people you trust and tell them about yourself or make them your support system so that you can come out of this problem.

Most people take mental health casually

In India, it has had a longstanding record of being looked down upon, avoided, trivialised, and broadly stigmatised. Acceptance is frequently replaced with religious rituals, denial, name-calling and victim condemning which causes only 7.3 per cent of 365 million youth even report mental problems.

Jaiswal said, "Most of the individuals we work with are aware of the terms, however, the extent of their understanding is limited and they use the terms casually and interchangeably. Owing to the
age of ‘insta-therapists’, there is a lot of advice out there available online, however, if symptoms of anxiety or panic persist over time, we recommend verifying your resources and acknowledge that a qualified mental health professional will be able to help you navigate symptoms of anxiety or panic beyond the scope of ‘self-help'."