While most people believe that children normally don’t get stressed, anxious or worry about anything, this doesn’t mean that they can’t suffer from anxiety attacks. Children, especially those that are often subjected to stressful situations also experience bouts of anxiety. The causes of child anxiety attack are pretty much the same with adults, and are categorized into three main groups: genetics and early childhood learning, brain biochemistry and fight or flight mechanism.

Genetics and Early Childhood Learning. Studies have shown that anxiety disorders run in the family. Children with parents or close relatives who suffer from bouts of anxiety attacks are likely to develop the same symptoms as they grow.

Brain Biochemistry. Serotonin and dopamine are two main brain neurotransmitters that affect the thoughts and feelings of a person.   When an imbalance of these two neurotransmitters occurs, the person feels anxious and depressed. Chemical imbalance may be due to a child suddenly being subjected to a stressful environment.

Fight or Flight Mechanism. When children find themselves in a stressful or threatening situation, they either defend themselves or escape from the situation. The body reacts to it and develops physical symptoms such as increased heartbeat, shortness of breath and sweating.

While these are the three main causes of anxiety attacks as explained by science, below are some other everyday situations that have been observed to lead to bouts of anxiety attacks in children.

Changes in Lifestyle. Children feel safe and comfortable in activities and situations that they’ve gotten used to, and get stressed and anxious when their lifestyle is suddenly changed. If they can’t quickly adapt to the change, they tend to develop the symptoms of anxiety attacks.

Stressful Situations and Events. The reasons why stressful events and situations can cause anxiety attacks have been discussed by health experts. Stressful situations and events in children often include peer pressure and school problems. Children who are also constantly bullied by their siblings, friends and playmates also develop anxiety attacks, as well as those who live in an abusive home.

Separation Anxiety. Children who have gotten used to the safety and comfort of their parents and home tend to develop fear of being away from such comfort zones. This behaviour is often observed in children who are old enough to go to school. They come up with reasons not to go to school, and their reasons may include stomach pain, dizziness, toothache, and headache.

Child anxiety attack should be a big concern among parents. It needs to be diagnosed early and treated immediately to keep it from exacerbating and persisting throughout their children’s lifetime. Anxiety attack can also affect children’s overall personality and behaviour. If left untreated, it can develop into a more serious condition called anxiety disorder.

Panic attack is a serious condition that involves a sudden outburst of fear, anxiety and worry. It can strike people of all ages without any warning, the reason why it is crucial to get to know its symptoms. Knowing the panic attack symptoms makes it easier to address the condition and prevent it from worsening.

What’s really bothering about panic attacks is that its symptoms are often associated with an underlying medical problem. During the onset of the attack, the sufferer would usually feel shortness of breath, pounding heart and chest pain – symptoms that are common to a patient having a heart attack. This makes it harder for medical health experts to diagnose a patient with panic attack during the first consultation or appointment.

The symptoms of panic attacks are divided into two categories: the physical symptoms and the emotional symptoms. While the physical symptoms are the most noticeable during the time of the attack, the emotional symptoms tend to develop through time.

Physical Symptoms

Physical symptoms of panic attacks include racing heartbeat, palpitation, chest pain, difficulty breathing, hyperventilation, numbness, and tingling sensations. The patient can also experience nausea, vertigo, sweating, chills, hot flashes, shaking, and trembling.

As mentioned, the physical symptoms of panic attacks are often mistaken for another health problem. During its onset, panic attacks will always be overlooked as the cause of the physical symptoms, unless the possible medical causes have been ruled out by a medical expert.

Emotional Symptoms

The emotional symptoms, on the other hand, include excessive fear and anxiousness on something that the patient shouldn’t really feel fearful or anxious about. These include fear of going crazy, losing control and dying. The patient also worries too much about a serious illness that he or she doesn’t really have, and feels unreal and detached from the physical environment.

A patient who continuously suffers from this condition tends to develop the fear of having another bout of attack, and avoids places or situations that can trigger it. Known as agoraphobia, this is common to severe cases of panic attack. Oftentimes, an agoraphobic person would rather stay at home or at safety areas than risk places that he or she feels will cause an attack.

If the panic attack symptoms, whether physical or emotional, are not addressed immediately, this condition will develop into a more serious problem called panic disorder. It is always best that panic attack is addressed right away using the available treatment methods, such as therapy and antidepressant medications.