Can panic attacks only last a few seconds?
Hi! I'm new here, so sorry if I'm asking in the wrong place, but here goes nothing.
I get short bursts of complete dread/fear that last less than a minute. Everytime it happens, my heart beats really fast and my stomach drops and it gets hard to breathe. Sometimes I feel like the world is falling apart. I call them panic attacks, but I'm not sure if they're considered that because they last at most 30 seconds.
Also, when would it consider being panic disorder? I get them regularly, at least 3 times a week, but they don't interfere with my life a lot (they just make me feel horrible for a few seconds).
Strictly speaking, no. Panic attacks by definition reach their peak within five to ten minutes, have a specific set of symptoms and cause significant distress and/or impairment. It sounds like what you're describing is the autonomic response to an emotional stimuli. Basically, what you're noticing is a wave of intense emotion that passes very quickly.
thank you. i have had similar experiences and i learned something from this.
