Evolutionary why we get panic attacks and why there is variation between people

[Universal]

I hope this gose somewhat to help people overcome there panic attacks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Zpg_XlvTis

[nomorepanic]

I found it a bit deep to be honest and I am not sure that it would really help me overcome panic attacks on its own.

[ladybird64]

Nope, sorry..this has very little to offer a Panic Attack sufferer, this information is widely available elsewhere.

This really isn't a discussion on how to overcome Panic, it's a discussion for Humanists and those who believe in the theory of evolution given by Darwin..he speaks about panic for less than a couple of minutes. :shrug:

[Meltdown]

I totally disagree - I found it to be an interesting new perspectice on panic attacks. I certainly hadn't considered before how evolution may have concentrated the panic response in some people, making them more sensitive than others

[ladybird64]

And I of course respect your opinion.

I was replying to the OP who thought it may help to overcome PA's, I was not talking about it bringing a new perspective on what may cause them.

[Veronica H]

:yesyes: Thanks for posting Vx.

[Meewah]

I'm sorry but I don't agree with most of what was said. Panic attacks come from a specific part of the brain and can be eliminated permanently using the right techniques. This goes for anxiety, OCD and agoraphobia, as well. I have found the Linden Method to be most effective in this regard. This drug-free approach permanently cures over 96% of its clients and has permanently cured over 136,000 people so far. The only difference between sufferers is the severity of their attacks and how long it will take for a complete cure. This can range from a few days to several months. The cause, however, is the same in all cases.

Sorry I don't agree. When your rational brain has been ambushed by the limbic system it is hard to stop. The more panics you have and the more anxiety you experience the harder these new neural pathways are to reroute. Our primitive brain the limbic system, which included the hippo-campus and Amagadyla, is our most dominant structure and it can trigger in milliseconds.

As humans we have started to use the extended brain more and more. The problem is evolution says that the humans with good use of the limbic system (fear) will continue to survive. Anxiety breeds anxiety. Anxious people give birth to anxious people. In my eyes the only thing that has changed is the type of triggers. We can for the first time in history see in relative comfort how dangerous life is. E.G. We are the only animal to know we are going to die. We can perceive suffering in others.

For this reason alone our limbic system only needs to be gently persuaded to act a few times and the channels that we spent so many years trying to close are reopened and then very simple things can cause the fear response. I and a number of other psychologists feel that once you experience this response a number of times you will then have to start learning how to live with it. How to move on in life and not be paralysed by the fear. Treat it as excess baggage and move on with it. We are the evolutionary success story, we have learned to fear our symptoms that in most animals MAY cause eventual premature death. The problem is that anxiety created symptoms very close to the ones we are programmed to act upon and so we visit the doctors and so keep the loop in place.

My best way of living so far is to learn relaxation. Then deal with death itself, De sensitise yourself as much as you can. Meditation is great at relaxing and when you become good at it you can introduce meditations on death. You can slowly deal with the ultimate fear.

Hope this helps.

Mee

[harasgenster]

I thought this was quite interesting, and I usually hate Richard Dawkins! True, it was stuff we knew before, but I'd always presumed anxiety ran through families because of a nurture rather than nature.

Not sure about those cured panic attacks through information, though. I think the poster's idea was that the doctor helped patients overcome anxiety by helping them to understand. It's possible some people with panic attacks don't know what they are and understanding could help them through it but that takes guts! I'm not sure information alone could help people.

Might watch that documentary all the way through, though :)