Yep that's what an intense panic attack feels like. Literally the worst experience you can imagine. His description matches my own worst experiences. And yes it would freak anyone out.
Guess how I overcame them :-) yep, you guessed, meditation - but it took time. I no longer have panic attacks but it was not a smooth journey. I also made big life changes and spent a lot of time in nature, coupled with medications.
On reflection I was pushing myself hard and was filled with ego - I'd had difficulties in the past before I started meditating and was massively overworking myself. A crash was inevitable. I am humbled by what I passed through - and that in itself is a victory.
Do I think meditation 'caused' the panic attacks, no, it brought to the surface something that was pretty much inevitable because of how I was living my life. Should I have treated meditation more respectfully and seriously. Yes, for sure.
Meditation is not a miracle drug, a panacea or a therapy. It should be viewed as the journey out of suffering - and that path by its very nature is likely to confront you with difficult experiences. If I can offer a tip or two from my own experiences :-
AGAIN: Meditation is not a miracle drug, a panacea or a therapy.
Serious meditation is a serious endeavour, like free-climbing. You should never take it lightly and you must be serious about it. When you take something seriously you do so with awareness of the dangers and the hardships you may face.
You may have genuinely very difficult experiences as the OP did, that is why it's important to have an experienced and wise Teacher. They can help you face these experiences and help you to grow stronger by doing so.
Take your time, the path is a long path, don't try for Nibbana by Tuesday, instead look for small concrete improvements and build on them over time. Be humble and realise that you have a lot of stuff to deal with and it takes time.
NEVER EVER lie, omit or exaggerate on an application form. This is how meditation teachers determine the risk of you having an experience you can't deal with. This was mentioned in the article, but I can say for sure that the teachers of Goenka retreats do try their hardest to not accept people on causes who might have difficulties. They also do drill in the idea that it's a serious undertaking.
If you have a difficult experience and can face it, even a little, your mind is stronger for it. The next time it happens maybe you can face it a little more.
I hope this article does not put people off meditation, it turned my life around. But at the same time, I hope people can take away the seriousness of such endeavours as the article does highlight.
When something that over a 100,000 people a year do any activity there will always be a tragic story. Be it running a marathon, boating or driving cars. Of course we should do everything possible to avoid that happening. But we do need to be realistic and acknowledge that tragedies do happen even when people have the mental equivalent of a driving license, air bags, seat belts and drive carefully.
Wishing you all happiness.