Is There a Relationship Between Panic Attacks and Menopause?

Panic attack symptoms are caused by the release of the hormone adrenaline into the bloodstream, but is there a deeper connection between panic attacks and hormones? Could hormonal fluctuations, like those that occur during puberty and menopause, actually cause the anxiety that triggers panic attacks? Well, the fact that a woman is more likely to experience a panic attack than a man may suggest that hormonal fluctuations – which women seem to experience more acutely than men – play some role in triggering excessive anxiety and panic attacks. Research, as well, might suggest some link between panic attacks and the hormonal changes that occur during menopause.

The research on the relationship between panic attacks and menopause is somewhat unsettled and controversial. Some studies have suggested that there is a link between the hormonal fluctuations associated with menstruation and panic attacks. Other experts dispute that hormonal fluctuations cause anxiety or panic attacks. Anecdotally, some women report a lessening in the severity and frequency of panic attacks after menopause. Some women who did not previously have panic attacks seem to begin experiencing them during perimenopause (premenopause) or menopause.

It seems, if there is a connection between menopausal hormone changes and panic attacks, it is something of a weak connection. After all, every woman goes through puberty and menopause, not every woman has panic attacks during menopause. Rather than triggering a panic attack, it is more likely that menopause makes a woman more susceptible to one.

Some of the symptoms of a panic attack can mirror those of menopause. Symptoms in common include trembling, problems sleeping, excessive sweating, racing heart, hot flashes, and irritability. A woman who has experienced panic attacks previously may misidentify the signs of menopause as the symptoms of a panic attack. What’s more, a woman who believes she has experienced a panic attack even though she is just experiencing the normal indications of menopause may induce an actual panic attack.

It is also important to sort out symptoms of a panic attack from symptoms of menopause to avoid treating menopause as though it is some horrible illness that afflicts women. Remember that all women go through menopause, and it is as natural as menstruation. While women can’t control menopause, it will not hurt them. Keeping this in mind may help lessen the anxiety, and thus the anxiety attacks, sometimes associated with menopause.

It is not completely clear what the connection between menopause and panic attacks is, and as long as that is so, it may be better to dissociate the two. Many women are anxious about menopause as it is, and adding one more issue during this complicated time only aggravates a delicate situation and may trigger panic attacks that otherwise would not happen. Perhaps the best way to handle the possibility of a panic attack during menopause is to come to terms with the many natural and wonderful things the body is doing during menopause and not focus so much on the occasional glitches like panic attacks.