Article in Washington Post

Noyak

Anyone else see this article in the washington post (by way of yahoo! ) that posts the hypothesis that the recent increase in deaths during triathlons could be related to panic attacks?

Not a lot of science backing up claims, but interesting regardless.  I've read the accounts and realize that 13 of the 14 deaths last year occured in the water.  I guess my medical mind made the leap to assume that this was related to the vasoconstriction of the cold water. That has been my working theory, but hard to completely explain the deaths based on this.

 

Just interested in what others think, and also opinons on the "panic attack" phenomenom.  I am training for my first tri in May (new to Haus new to sport) and can definitely see anxiety being an issue in the open water.  I am one of those high strung guys who puked before every football game and definitely before every track race until things started.  Could easily see myself getting worked up.  Looking forward to hearing anecdotal opinions regarding this.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...story.html

 Chris

[Deleted User]

I guess the actual mechanism is debatable, but I don't think there's any doubt that it has to do with the swim. After all, I think the reason why the swim is always the first leg of a triathlon is to prevent drownings and such related to fatigue. Seeing that all the panic and anxiety in any sort of race usually happens at the start anyway, it might be hard to truly eliminate all the major risks of a swim since there are always going to be factors like these.

Paul Hough

I think it's a real phenomenon even among experienced racers. I'm a 2010 USAT All American for my age group and have completed 4 IMs since 2008...3 with swims between 68-71 mins and 1 with the swim in 83 mins. Want to guess which one I had a panic attack in? It was my 2nd IM and I was plenty confident on the starting line...ready to go for it. But within a quarter mile I was actually looking for a kayaker, had thoughts about going back to shore, but decided that forward was the only way to survive...meanwhile my heart was racing like I was in an extended 100m sprint. I was scared and vividly recall thinking that drowning was a distinct possiblity. After about 3/4 mile I finally tagged on to a kayaker for about a minute to catch my breath and just took it easy the rest of the way. For me, cold water plus the wet suit can trigger a rapid heart rate. I conquered my fears and have done (and will do) more IMs since that one, but I've learned to be less aggressive at the start and not to tighten up if I'm getting swum over. No cold water races planned for 2012, but I'm looking at St George for 2013.

Jump4Joy19

I've often thought it was probably some combination of a vagus reflex due to the cold water and panic induced by the water, the constriction of the wetsuit, and the crowds. The Oregon race that's had two fatalities in the swim in the last couple of years is in a very very cold lake (Pacific Crest) which is also at 4300 feet elevation, which can further induce panic due to lack of oxygen.

I know I had a bit of a "moment" in a triathlon this year in Lake Tahoe, from the combo of elevation and cold water. I think beach starts can contribute to this, especially when you have to get out a good time before you go running back in. If you can immerse your face in the cold water ahead of time to get used to it, you can avoid the vagus reflex. But if you've been standing on the beach for awhile and then go running in, the cold water hitting your face can trigger it. I like water starts for this reason, especially in colder water.