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Q: Sometimes I feel really anxious the day after I drink. Can alcohol cause a panic attack?
The short answer is yes.
Panic attacks — sudden waves of overwhelming fear and apprehension, along with physical symptoms like chest pain and tightness, sweating, a racing heartbeat, nausea, difficulty breathing, feeling faint or numbness in the arms and hands — are intense episodes of anxiety.
And alcohol and anxiety are considered “two sides of the same coin,” said Dr. Alëna Balasanova, an associate professor of psychiatry and the director of addiction psychiatry education at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
While drinking is often used as a social lubricant or a way to relax and unwind, scientists have found that alcohol can ramp up feelings of anxiety. These feelings can result when alcohol is metabolized by the body, a process that can take a day or longer to complete. Regular, heavy drinkers may experience higher levels of anxiety, particularly after the alcohol wears off.
“I don’t want to scare people to think that if you go out and you have a few glasses of wine, that you’re going to have a panic attack,” Dr. Balasanova said. “But certainly the risk is always there.”
And that risk is higher if you already have an anxiety disorder.
Ideally, “people who are prone to anxiety should avoid heavy drinking, or drinking at all, even if alcohol seems to alleviate anxiety in the short term,” said Jennifer E. Merrill, an associate professor of behavioral and social sciences at Brown University.