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sometimes 10 times a day, sometimes only once a week,”
9
says Lisa T.
McElroy, an associate professor of law at the Drexel University Earle
Mack School of Law.
Panic Attack Versus Panic Disorder
Not everyone who has a panic attack goes on to develop panic disor-
der. Many people experience a panic attack or two during their life-
time and never have another. Panic attacks can also be a symptom
of several other psychiatric disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive
disorder (an anxiety disorder characterized by unreasonable thoughts
or fears, called obsessions, that compel a person to perform certain
repetitive behaviors, called rituals). They can also be due to having a
specific phobia (an irrational fear of a particular object or situation).
In fact, many people who have a mental illness (of which there are
more than two hundred classified forms, according to the
Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,
the standard classification
of mental disorders used by mental health professionals) will have at
least one panic attack in their lifetime.
About 10 to 15 percent of American adults experience occasional
panic attacks, and about 2 percent develop panic disorder. “A persis-
tent heavy burden and lots of stress can trigger a panic attack, but one
or a few of these attacks don’t automati-
cally lead to panic disorder,” says re-
searcher and psychologist Anders Hov-
land. “Panic disorder is characterized
by repeated attacks and worries about
being stricken by new ones,”
10
he says.
In an attempt to avoid future panic
attacks, people with recurring panic at-
tacks may significantly change their
behavior. They may avoid places and
situations where attacks occurred in the
past, which can include public transportation, restaurants, sporting
events, and parties with family and friends. Avoiding somany common
places disrupts individuals’ ability to live a normal life and may signal
they have developed full-blown panic disorder.
In order to be diagnosed with panic disorder, a person must have
recurring panic attacks, experience excessive anxiety over future at-
“Panic disorder is
characterized by
repeated attacks and
worries about being
stricken by new ones.”
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—Anders Hovland, a researcher
and psychologist.
