British swimming champion Jo Jackson's asthma abruptly worsened after an illness during Christmas of 2009. As she struggled through subsequent asthma episodes, panic attacks set in. According to a 2010 interview in "The Guardian," Jackson wondered if her athletic career was over, but careful treatment of her asthma put her back in the swimming lanes. If you are having trouble breathing during or after exercise, it is important to have a medical checkup to determine if you have exercise-induced asthma, panic attack disorder or both.
Two Different Conditions
Asthma is a disease in which the lungs become inflamed after exposure to a "trigger" such as exercise, chemicals, mold, stress, weather changes and other causes. The inside of the lungs swells up, resulting in coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, breathing difficulties and sometimes death. Panic disorder is a psychological illness in which you have episodes of unexpected feelings of terror striking suddenly, with no warning, leaving you with fear, a pounding heart, faintness, chest pain and trouble breathing.
History
Scientists did not recognize exercise-induced asthma until the 17th century, when Italian physician Bernardino Ramazzini, a founder of sports medicine, noticed that runners often suffered from asthma induced by racing, according to an article in a 1991 issue of "Clinical Rheumatology." Knowledge of panic disorder surfaced during studies of anxiety in the 19th century, but panic attacks were not fully recognized as a separate disorder until 1980.
Conditions Sometimes Connected
Many people suffering from exercise-induced asthma do not have panic attack disorder and vice versa. But a January 2011 study of 3,672 panic attack disorder patients done by two researchers at Taipei Medical University in Taiwan, published in "Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica," found that people suffering from panic attack disorder are twice as likely to also have asthma as are people who do not have panic attack disorder.
Diagnosing the Conditions
The primary clue that you are experiencing a panic attack rather than an exercise-induced asthma attack is that a panic attack causes extreme fear and occurs even when you are not exercising or exposed to any asthma triggers. You can find other information on telling the two conditions apart in a free downloadable document from Merced, California. Union High School District called "First Aid: Shortness of Breath."
Treatments
See your family physician to ensure that you are not suffering from an illness other than exercise-induced asthma or panic attack disorder. If your family physician determines that you have asthma, he will refer you to a pulmonary specialist who can prescribe inhaled sprays and pills to control your exercise-induced asthma. If you suspect that you also have panic attack disorder, you should ask your family physician to refer you to a therapist and a psychiatrist. A therapist can work with you to discover any current anxieties that are creating the panic attacks. Your psychiatrist can prescribe medications that might reduce the number of panic attacks.
References
- Guardian:: After Battling Asthma, Jo Jackson Wants to Leave Rivals Breathless
- "Clinical Rheumatology"; Bernardino Ramazzini "Fathers of Sports Medicine"; Dr. W. Watson Buchanan; 1991
- National Institute of Mental Health: Panic Disorder
- PubMed: Panic Disorder in a Nationwide Population-Based Study in Taiwan
- MUHSD: First Aid: Shortness of Breath
- National Heart Lung and Blood Institute: Asthma
