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Mental health

Where to Get Help for Panic Attacks

Panic attacks are very treatable. Start with a primary care or mental health clinician, who can rule out other causes and begin evidence-based care like CBT, medication, or both.

Talk to a clinician

Dr. Aisha Donovan — Psychiatrist

Evaluating panic, ruling out medical mimics, and combining CBT with medication when indicated. Gale can match you with a licensed clinician for a visit.

Find care →

First, what a panic attack is

A panic attack is a sudden surge of intense fear with physical symptoms like a racing heart, shortness of breath, chest tightness, dizziness, or a sense of doom, peaking within minutes. Panic is listed among the recognized anxiety disorders, and persistent, excessive fear of this kind does not usually fade on its own without help 1. The symptoms feel dangerous, but the attack itself is not physically harming you, which is part of what treatment helps you relearn.

Where to start getting help

You have several good doors in. A primary care provider can do an initial check, make sure nothing medical is driving the symptoms, and refer you onward. A therapist or psychologist can provide cognitive behavioral therapy, a first-line, well-supported treatment for anxiety and panic 2. A psychiatric prescriber (psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner) can evaluate whether medication would help. Many people start with whichever is easiest to reach; all of them can point you toward the right care.

What treatment usually looks like

Treatment for panic is among the more reliably effective areas of mental health care. Cognitive behavioral therapy teaches you to interpret the body's alarm signals accurately and gradually face the sensations and situations you have been avoiding. Medication, often an SSRI, can reduce how often and how intensely attacks happen 2. Research on anxiety treatment finds therapy and medication each beat placebo, and the combination often works best of all 3. A clinician helps you pick the mix that fits.

When a clinician helps

Panic deserves a professional look for several concrete reasons. A clinician uses validated tools to confirm this is panic and not another condition, and rules out medical causes, some heart, thyroid, and breathing problems can imitate panic, so this step matters. They deliver evidence-based CBT designed specifically for panic, which research supports as a first-line treatment 2, and they assess whether medication would help, coordinating both since the combination often produces the strongest results 3. They also help you build a plan for the moments an attack hits. This is care that genuinely shortens how long you struggle.

Getting through an attack right now

In the moment, slow your breathing, breathe out a little longer than you breathe in, remind yourself the peak passes within minutes, and let the wave move through rather than fighting it. These are stopgaps, not a substitute for treatment, but they can take the edge off while you arrange care. If you are unsure whether what you are feeling is panic or something physical, especially the first time, it is reasonable to get checked.

Common questions

Who should I see first for panic attacks?

Any of these is a fine starting point: a primary care provider, a therapist, or a psychiatric prescriber. A primary care visit is often easiest and can rule out medical causes and refer you to mental health care.

Are panic attacks dangerous?

The attack itself is not physically harming you, even though it feels alarming. That said, if it is your first one, or symptoms are unusual, it is reasonable to get checked to be sure nothing medical is going on.

Can panic attacks really be treated?

Yes. Panic is one of the most treatable anxiety problems. Cognitive behavioral therapy and medication each help, and many people see attacks become far less frequent or stop with care.

Talk to a clinician

Dr. Aisha Donovan — Psychiatrist

Evaluating panic, ruling out medical mimics, and combining CBT with medication when indicated. Gale can match you with a licensed clinician for a visit.

Find care →

When to seek prompt or urgent care

  • —Chest pain or pressure that is new, severe, or spreading to the arm or jaw
  • —Fainting, or a first-time episode where you are unsure if it is panic or something physical
  • —Panic attacks that are becoming more frequent or making you avoid leaving home
  • —Thoughts of harming yourself or feeling hopeless

If you have severe chest pain, trouble breathing, or fainting, call 911. If you are thinking about ending your life, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).

This article is general education, not a diagnosis, and does not replace evaluation by a licensed clinician.

References

  1. 1.National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (2024). Anxiety Disorders. National Institute of Mental Health, NIH. link ✓Panic is among the recognized anxiety disorders, which involve persistent, excessive fear that does not go away on its own.
  2. 2.Walter HJ, Bukstein OG, Abright AR, Keable H, Ramtekkar U, Ripperger-Suhler J, Rockhill C (2020). Clinical Practice Guideline for the Assessment and Treatment of Children and Adolescents With Anxiety Disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 59(10):1107-1124. doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.005 ✓Both CBT and SSRI medication have considerable evidence as safe, effective first-line treatments for anxiety.
  3. 3.National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (2008). Study Identifies Three Effective Treatments for Childhood Anxiety Disorders. National Institute of Mental Health, NIH (Science Update). link ✓Therapy and medication each exceeded placebo, and the combination helped the most people.

3 sources, numbered by first appearance. General health information, not medical advice — synthetic demonstration content.