MONTREAL - Stephane Caron, 42, has a rock-star alter-ego that wins awards and attracts big crowds.

But under the glamorous surface of life as Stefie Shock lies a mental health battle that he fights every day.

Throughout his life Shock has fought sporadic episodes of intense anxiety that manifest themselves through panic attacks which strike at random moments.

"You never know when, you never know how long it's going to be," says Shock. "Sometimes it's in the morning when you have a quiet breakfast with the birds singing and everything is fine and all of a sudden you just hit by a crisis."

Shock says that he would like others going through the same problems to know that they are not alone in the battle.

Others have been inspired by his disclosure.

"A lot of people realized: ‘hey that's what I have,' or people that already knew felt like coming out themselves because they felt, ‘well if he can do it - why can't I?'"

Shock says he is more accustomed to the terrible attacks than he did was when he was younger. In his case, the attacks take the form of breathing difficulties and a numbness in certain extremities.

The sudden attacks can be debilitating, according to a mental health specialist who says extreme anxiety can derail entire lives.

"To a point where it really makes us suffer or it affects what we do in life or how we function," says Camillo Zacchia, a psychologist at the Douglas Hospital. "For example a person dropping out of school because they're afraid of giving presentations. A person refusing a promotion because it involves air travel and so on, that's when you say the anxiety has crossed the line."

Panic attacks can be rooted in a variety of causes, including heredity, biology and psychology.

Attacks often peak after about 10 minutes and are characterized by increased heart rate or palpitations, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea and a fear that one is going insane or dying.

Some treatments involve breathing exercises, increased exercise, and psychological counseling.

In the case of Stefie Shock, he remains committed to singing the tune of his condition and that's quite alright with those around him.

He's dealing with it," says his manager Pierre Lachance.

"He's living with it and he's accepting it and now he's talking about it and that's even better. It helps him and it's going to help others as well."