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sidewalk? We also dread the thought of passing out for fear that we may never
wake but fall into a coma. Passing out is caused by a lack of blood to the brain.
When we faint, the body falls to the ground and allows blood to be easily
supplied to the brain—which is, again, another of the clever safety mechanisms
of the body. Quite simply, fainting during a panic attack is highly uncommon due
to the amount of blood that is being circulated. Your heart is usually beating fast
and there is little worry that the brain would be short of fresh supply. The
dizziness often felt during a panic attack is caused by increased respiration, and
while it may be confusing for the individual, it is harmless and does not lead to
fainting.
Heart Attacks
This really is a minefield and almost anyone who has suffered from panic attacks
at some point will fear for the health of their heart. Let us look at the facts of
heart disease and see how this differs from panic attacks.
The major symptoms of heart disease are breathlessness and chest pain, as well
as occasional palpitations and fainting. Such symptoms are generally related to
the amount of physical effort exerted. That is, the harder you exercise, the
worse the symptoms, and the less you exercise, the better.
The symptoms will usually go away quickly if the individual rests. This is very
different to the symptoms associated with panic attacks. Certainly, panic
symptoms can occur during exercise, but they are different to the symptoms of
a heart attack as they occur frequently at rest. Of most importance, heart
disease will almost always produce major electrical changes in the heart, which
are picked up very obviously by an EKG. In panic attacks, the only change that
shows up on the EKG is a slight increase in heartbeat rate.
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