Curt Suplee, Washington Post Charles Darwin might never have revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution if he had not suffered from chronic mental illness that turned him into a scholarly recluse, a provocative new study concludes. The combination kept the celebrated naturalist removed from society and probably forced him to focus on the epochal concept of natural selection, according to Thomas Barloon and Russell Noyes of the University of Iowa College of Medicine. Panic disorder, which affects an estimated 13 million Americans, manifests itself in unexpected attacks of extreme anxiety, with symptoms including rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, trembling, sweating, nausea and dizziness.
Some victims feel they are losing their minds or are about to die.
Many become so obsessively worried about subsequent attacks that they make major changes in their behaviours, shunning whatever situation may have prompted the panic. The onset of panic disorder usually occurs between late adolescence and the mid-thirties. Darwin was 27 when his illness first became severe. He had been a gregarious collegian, intrepid traveler and vigorous outdoorsman.