Something that has always struck me as interesting about psychological disorders is that they can be “co-morbid” or related to each other. It’s not always the same way having high cholesterol is related to having a heart attack, but the relation with psychological disorders sometimes occur side by side.
Perfectly Panic Free
I can’t explain it very well, but I learned about it from ‘Perfectly Panic Free,’ an eBook about panic disorder written by Mike Karowski. He explained co-morbidity among psychological disorders, how they can be connected to each other through characteristics.
Panic attack, PANIC Disorder—Holly Ford Brown (Flickr.com)
As I learned about panic disorder, I did think it was fascinating that there were several other psychological disorders co-morbid to it. Since some of you have written to me asking for more details on the book, I thought this would be a good place to start.
Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder that can be detrimental to the person suffering from it. In extreme cases, people no longer leave the house for fear of another panic attack. According to the book, stressors like traumatic events, life changes, psychological factors, and physical illness can trigger the initial attack, which can later on manifest into more attacks and fear of having more attacks.
The psychological factors which are related to panic disorders are stress, trauma, and fear. The combination of these factors can lead to anxiety. When the anxiety is exacerbated to the point that the person is anxious everyday, panic attacks can occur.
This is why panic disorder is co-morbid or greatly related to the other anxiety disorders, such as generalized anxiety disorder, phobias (can be seen in how people with panic disorder try to avoid certain situations), post-traumatic stress disorder (sometimes occurs before the panic attacks), obsessive compulsive disorder, and agoraphobia (fear of not being able to escape a situation.)
Sometimes these anxiety disorders occur before panic attacks, and sometimes they are developed after panic disorder. Apart from these disorders, however, there are other psychological disorders that are co-morbid to panic disorder. For example, long term substance abuse (both alcohol and psychoactive drugs) can cause panic disorder (especially during withdrawal periods) because of a change in brain chemistry and function. Other than that, depression and certain personality disorders can be co-morbid to panic disorder.
From these sentences alone, you can see how panic disorder can actually be a signal for underlying problems, or can lead to further problems. This is why it has to be addressed and treated as soon as can be.
I don’t know if I did a very good job of explaining everything, but for more information on panic disorder, the other psychological disorders co-morbid or related to it, and all of your options for treatment, check out Perfectly Panic Free. The information is presented in a clear and easy to read format, and you’re sure to find the answers you’re looking for!
