What Is The Difference Between A Panic Attack And An Anxiety Attack?

The terms panic attack and anxiety attack are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same. There are key characteristics that distinguish them, although they have several symptoms in common. The two terms are mixed not only by patients, but by psychology students themselves.

It will be difficult to find the right treatment or develop useful coping skills if the use of the terms is not correctly differentiated. Therefore, knowing the difference between an anxiety attack and a panic attack is more than a matter of semantics.

By understanding the symptoms of anxiety versus panic attacks, a patient’s case and the issues behind the attacks can be more efficiently addressed. The basic malaise is very different and its evolution as well, so it is essential to differentiate them well.

Anxiety attack and panic attack

An anxiety attack often comes as a reaction to a particular stressor or concern. You’ve been dreading a layoff for a long time and your boss calls you to talk and that’s when your anxiety symptoms can skyrocket.

In an anxiety attack, people may feel fearful, apprehensive, their heart racing, or they feel short of breath, but it is very short-lived and when the stressor goes away, so does the anxiety attack.

Panic attack, on the other hand, occurs when there is no real danger or apparent cause. It is unprovoked and in many cases it is quite unpredictable. In a panic attack, the person is flooded with terror, fear, or apprehension.

They may feel like they are going to die, lose control, or have a heart attack. They have a number of physical symptoms that can include chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, or nausea.

Are they included in the DSM?

At the end of 2020, “anxiety attack” does not correspond to any diagnostic category as such in the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).

An anxiety attack is actually a colloquial term created for anxiety sufferers to describe periods of intense or prolonged anxiety.

Panic attacks are easy to define because there is a clinical consensus. Here’s an official DSM definition: “A panic attack is a sudden episode of intense fear that triggers severe physical reactions when there is no real danger or apparent cause.”

Anxiety attack symptoms

When we speak of an anxiety attack, we refer to a peak of it that can be prolonged in time – well until the stimulus that generates it disappears, we find an alternative coping strategy or the physiological system is exhausted.

It is more serious than the simple feeling of anxiety, but as a rule it does not usually reach the levels of activation that  a panic attack generates . It can last from minutes to hours, even days and weeks. It usually has one or more of the following symptoms:

• Restlessness, a feeling of exhaustion or nervousness.
• A great fatigue in the absence of prolonged or intense physical or mental effort.
• Difficulty concentrating or having a blank mind.
• Irritability.
• Muscle tension.
• Difficulty controlling worries.

• Sleep problems (difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep or restless or unsatisfactory sleep).

Therapist Ginger Poag defined an anxiety attack as ‘a period of apprehension about possible future events’. Sometimes an anxiety attack is the prelude to a panic attack.

Unlike panic attacks, anxiety attacks are not necessarily signs of an anxiety disorder. Anxiety is a natural response to certain stimuli or situations, and anxiety attacks are just more intense forms of that emotion.

Anxiety attacks often cause patterns of avoidance or excessive caution. For example, someone who has experienced anxiety attacks due to social anxiety may avoid the places or situations that have made them anxious.

Symptoms of a panic attack

Serious physical reactions can be triggered in a panic attack. Many of the people who suffer from it think they are having a heart attack. Some call 911 because they don’t know what they are experiencing. They usually have at least some of the following symptoms, which usually last 10-15 minutes:

• Feeling of death or imminent danger.
• Fear of losing control or dying.
• Fast, pounding heart rate.
• Perspiration.
• Tremors
• Difficulty breathing or tightness in the throat.
• Hot flushes.
• Nausea.
• Abdominal cramp
• Chest pain.
• Headache.
• Dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting
• Numbness or tingling
• Feeling of unreality or detachment.

With panic attacks, people often have a sense of immediate threat. This causes them to respond by asking for help or trying to escape from whatever situation they find themselves in. Sometimes people only have one or two panic attacks in their lives.

They usually occur under extreme amounts of stress or pressure. Repeatedly experiencing panic attacks is usually a symptom of panic disorder. Certain traumatic events can eventually cause someone to develop panic disorder.

Differentiate a panic attack from an anxiety attack

Because the symptoms are so similar, it can be difficult to distinguish between panic attacks and anxiety attacks. Here are some tips that can help:

• Panic attacks generally occur without a trigger. Anxiety is a response to a perceived stressor or threat.

• The symptoms of a panic attack are intense and disturbing. They often involve a sense of “unreality” and detachment. Anxiety symptoms vary in intensity, from mild to severe.
• Panic attacks appear suddenly, while anxiety symptoms gradually become more intense within minutes, hours, or days.
• Panic attacks disappear after a few minutes, while anxiety symptoms can prevail for long periods.

Keeping in mind the difference between a panic attack and an anxiety attack is key, since many patients believe that they have anxiety attacks and what they really suffer from is a panic disorder. This confusion is the cause in many cases that the patient does not go to therapy.

On the other hand, confusing one with the other in the differential diagnosis, in the worst case the person could become dependent on a drug that he does not need. Therefore, it is vital that professionals also understand the differences and work rigorously.