Panic attacks are not directly fatal despite causing intense physical symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath, though professional therapeutic support is essential for managing these frightening episodes and preventing potential health complications from chronic stress and anxiety.
If you've ever experienced the heart-pounding intensity of a panic attack, you may have wondered if it could be life-threatening. While these episodes can feel overwhelmingly dangerous, understanding the facts can bring genuine relief—and we're here to help you separate reality from fear.
Can You Die from a Panic Attack? Understanding Its Link To Anxiety And Mental Health Concerns
Panic attacks can occur suddenly and seemingly without reason. They’re often associated with panic disorder and anxiety disorder, and the symptoms can be very distressing. You might feel shortness of breath, a spike in blood pressure, or even pain in your chest, which could lead some to fear they are having a heart attack.
But, can you die from a panic attack?
Whether it is your first time having a panic attack or something that occurs regularly, you may fear the symptoms you experience. Panic attacks are physical and emotional responses to anxiety, fear, and stress, causing physiological changes such as a racing heart and intense chest pain. As physical symptoms are commonly reported during panic attacks, one may believe that they are dying, harmed, or sick when they occur.
Although anxiety and panic disorder may have physical and mental health risks, it is not common to die from a panic attack. However, if you are having severe and unrelenting chest pain, fever, chills, heart palpitations, or shortness of breath, visit an emergency room to rule out a medical emergency due to cardiovascular issues, such as acute myocardial infarction or coronary artery disease, as these conditions are potentially fatal.
Understanding the reality of panic attacks
It is not common for panic attacks to be fatal. They are often symptoms of a mental health condition, such as generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder. In some cases, physical symptoms and extreme fear may worsen existing health conditions, like cardiovascular disease.
If you believe you may be experiencing symptoms of a physical illness on top of your panic attack, contact your primary healthcare provider for screening. In some cases, panic disorder may cause symptoms that seem impossible to bear on your own. Urgent care, hospitals, or your primary care physician, in the case of crisis, may also offer medical support through appropriate interventions.
Although panic attacks are unlikely to kill you, chronic anxiety and stress can negatively affect your health and lead to chronic health conditions like coronary heart disease. Stress can cause inflammation that may take a toll on the systems in your body, potentially leading to heart problems, including high blood pressure or heart muscle damage due to reduced blood flow. These subsequent health issues can directly cause cardiovascular death.
Coping with stress in unhealthy ways, such as smoking and drinking alcohol, increases the risk of heart attack. Effective long-term treatments for stress management can be vital in preventing both heart attacks and panic attacks. Some individuals talk to their healthcare provider about strategies to reduce the chance of panic attacks. To stay healthy and prevent anxiety and stress-related illnesses, consider reaching out for support for your panic attacks.
If you have chest pain, have never had a panic attack before, or have a family history of cardiac issues like heart disease, general medical advice from healthcare professionals and medically-reviewed sources would be to go to the hospital to ensure you’re not in danger.
The constant release of stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline in your body during an attack may cause an increased risk of health concerns over time. Additionally, one might experience migraines, headaches, stomach upset, and other physical symptoms commonly related to anxiety. Notably, a study published in the American Journal of Medicine also posits that individuals with heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation are more likely to develop anxiety disorders, which may include panic disorder.
Recognizing panic attack symptoms
At times, the symptoms of a panic attack might resemble those of a heart attack. Your chest may tighten, you may be dizzy, and it could become difficult to breathe. You may also experience a tingling sensation in your fingers or arms. However, there are a few differences between a cardiovascular emergency and a panic attack.
The tingling in your arms from a panic attack may be caused by hyperventilating from taking rapid breaths. You might experience numbness and pain on both sides of your body. When someone has a heart attack, on the other hand, the pain and tingling are usually isolated to the left arm and mostly the left side or center of the chest, combined with pressure or heaviness. Many people also experience heart attack pain in their back.
Sources state that heart attacks often occur during physical exertion, whereas panic attacks can occur at rest. Additionally, panic attacks are often short-term, whereas heart attacks may worsen over time and become unbearable.