article_snippet: panic attacks are extremely common, with one in ten of us thought to suffer from panic attacks at least occasionally.
article_snippet: A panic attack typically causes a faster heartbeat, dizziness, nausea and an overwhelming sense of anxiety.
article_snippet: As Paul Salkovskis, professor of clinical psychology at the University of Bath, explains, the symptoms of a panic attack can overlap with an epileptic seizure. '
article_snippet: It's not unusual for people with panic attacks to get an incorrect preliminary diagnosis of epilepsy, and occasionally, people with epilepsy get a misdiagnosis of panic attacks.
article_snippet: But a further complication is that seizures may cause someone to panic, adds Professor Salkovskis. '
article_snippet: It's perfectly possible that people with epilepsy will get panicky at the prospect of having a seizure.
article_snippet: And in panic attacks, people hyperventilate, which can trigger an epileptic attack in people who are vulnerable to it.'
article_snippet: One key differences between them is that while a seizure can lead to loss of consciousness, a panic attack usually won't, a panic attack says.
article_snippet: Dr Cock says: 'In temporal lobe seizures, common warning signs are feelings of intense anxiety, fear and panic, so these are ones more likely to be misdiagnosed as panic attacks.
article_snippet: Epilepsy does not tend to worsen over time but, if left untreated, the continued, unexplained seizures can fuel further anxiety, which may make the seizures worse. '
article_snippet: Generally, if people are not diagnosed, that causes anxiety and depression and increases stress levels, which may make seizures more frequent and more serious,' says Dr Cock. '
article_snippet: Whether stress itself causes seizures is controversial, but it's likely that, in some individuals, it may be a trigger - perhaps because stress leads to other triggers, such as alcohol and sleep deprivation.'