Signs and Symptoms. They might fear they are having a heart attack or stroke, that they are going crazy or losing control, or that they are going to die. Panic disorder often has a dramatic impact on victims' lives and gives rise to other mental illnesses and negative behaviors. Victims might begin to avoid places or circumstances where panic attacks have occurred, thinking that these might have caused their attacks. This leads to a phobic avoidance of these places or circumstances.
Panic attacks are difficult to endure.
Because they can happen at any time, victims cannot necessarily prepare themselves. This fear of going through another attack can lead to anticipatory anxiety. Often panic disorder victims retreat into a life of isolation, too afraid even to leave their own homes. Ultimately, this makes normal living impossible. And in many cases another common disorder occurs in depression.