What is the treatment for panic attacks and panic disorder?
No treatment is needed if you have just an occasional panic attack. It may help if you understand about panic attacks. This may reassure you that any physical symptoms you get during a panic attack are not due to a physical disease. It may help to know how to deal with a panic attack. Treatment can help if you have recurring attacks (panic disorder). The main aim of treatment is to reduce the number and severity of panic attacks.Antidepressant medicines An antidepressant medicine is the usual treatment. These usually work well to prevent panic attacks in more than half of cases. (These medicines are often used to treat depression, but have been found to work well for panic disorder too, even if you are not depressed.) They work by interfering with brain chemicals (neurotransmitters) such as serotonin which may be involved in causing symptoms of panic. • Antidepressants do not work straight away. It takes 2-4 weeks before their effect builds up and may take up to eight weeks to work ful
