How CBT can help with different mental health problems

Panic Disorder

Panic Disorder is an anxiety disorder characterised by repeated and unexpected panic attacks. Panic attacks are sudden surges of intense fear, discomfort, or a sense of losing control, triggering severe physical reactions when there is no real danger or apparent cause.

Physical symptoms can include:

A racing/pounding heart

Sweating, trembling or shaking

Shortness of breath

Chest pains or tightness

Nausea or churning stomach

Dizziness, feeling faint or light headedness

Tingling fingers or toes

Chills or hot flushes

A feeling of dread and/or fear of dying or losing control

Panic attacks often occur without an apparent trigger and can last from a few minutes to an hour or sometimes longer. Panic attacks are not limited to specific stressful situations and can feel overwhelming.

While these feelings can be distressing, panic attacks themselves are not life-threatening, and the physical symptoms usually resolve with time. However, often individuals with the disorder experience persistent worry and fear about having future attacks or their consequences, such as having a heart attack or dying. This fear of future attacks may lead to ongoing anxiety.

People may significantly change their behaviour to avoid potential triggers or situations where they fear an attack might occur, such as avoiding public places.

NICE guidelines recommend 6-12 sessions.

How CBT helps

CBT helps individuals understand and change their thought patterns and behaviours related to panic attacks by breaking the cycle of fear and avoidance that maintains panic disorder.

It helps people learn how panic works, and how to reinterpret benign physical sensations like a racing heart as a normal, if uncomfortable, part of this process. It helps people tolerate the physical sensations of anxiety through techniques like exposure therapy, allowing people to see that the physical symptoms are not dangerous. This can help reduce the frequency and severity of attacks.

CBT helps people identify and challenge catastrophic thoughts about panic symptoms and to stop avoiding situations that trigger panic. It helps people gradually confront real-life situations they have been avoiding, such as driving in traffic or going to a crowded place.

It teaches people to stop/drop safety-seeking behaviours, such as constantly checking heart rate.

CBT helps people learn that you can tolerate the physical sensations of panic without them escalating into a full-blown attack or causing harm.

This helps reduce the fear and anticipation of future attacks, leading to a significant improvement in symptoms and quality of life