Finding help for panic disorder and panic attacks

Understanding panic attacks and panic disorder in everyday terms

If you are looking for help because you or someone you care about has experienced sudden episodes of intense fear or overwhelming physical sensations, you are not alone in wanting clear information. Panic attacks are often described as waves of intense fear that include strong bodily sensations - such as racing heart, breathlessness, dizziness or a sense of unreality - and they can be terrifying. When those episodes occur repeatedly or lead to persistent worry about future attacks or changes in behavior to avoid them, that pattern is commonly called panic disorder in clinical settings. You do not need medical jargon to discuss what you are experiencing, and a helpful first step is finding a clinician whose profile shows experience with panic-related concerns so you can ask specific questions about how they work with these experiences.

Because panic attacks vary from person to person, you may be concerned about the physical sensations, the unpredictability, or how panic interacts with other aspects of life such as eating, social situations or body image. When exploring profiles on this page, look for language that reflects attention to those intersections and for clinicians who list panic disorder or panic attacks as a focus area alongside eating, food or body image issues. That combination on a profile signals that the clinician has chosen to describe those concerns as part of the work they offer, though it does not guarantee any particular training or outcome.

How panic-related concerns can relate to eating, food and body image

Panic and issues around eating, food and body image can show up together in many ways. For some people, eating experiences or body-related anxiety can trigger intense physical or emotional responses that feel like panic. For others, the experience of panic may change appetite, mealtime routines or how you relate to your body. The presence of both sets of concerns in a profile indicates clinicians who acknowledge that these areas often intersect in real lives, not that one always causes the other.

When panic and food or body image concerns are present together, you may want to consider whether you also need medical or nutritional monitoring. If you are experiencing physical symptoms related to food intake, very low intake, purging behaviors or rapid changes that affect your health, please see a doctor promptly. If you are in urgent distress and need immediate crisis support, you can contact your local services - in the United States dial 988, in the United Kingdom contact Beat at 0808 801 0677, and in Australia contact Butterfly at 1800 33 4673. Profiles on this directory are grouped to help you find clinicians who list both areas so you can talk about how those concerns interact and what supports you may need.

Questions to ask about approach, experience and professional standing

When you review profiles, prepare concrete questions that help you compare clinicians on the things that matter to you. Ask how a clinician typically works with panic symptoms and whether they have experience addressing panic in the context of eating or body image worries. Phrase questions to reflect the directory language - for example, ask if they have worked with people who list both panic and eating or body image concerns and what kinds of goals they commonly set.

Pay attention to how a profile presents credentials and training. Academic degrees such as PhD, PsyD, MD, MA or MSW indicate educational background but do not by themselves indicate current permission to practice. In the United States clinicians will normally list licensing credentials that indicate their regulated permission to practice; in the United Kingdom clinicians may list registration or professional body membership; and in Australia clinicians may list registration or professional association membership. Ask a clinician to clarify their current authorization to practice in the listed location and how that relates to the care they provide. Also ask about whether they work alongside medical or nutritional professionals when eating-related physical concerns are present.

What to discuss before starting online or remote care

If you are considering remote sessions, it helps to discuss practical and safety matters before you begin. Ask where the clinician is based and what their listed location means for professional oversight and emergency procedures, and ask how they handle situations where you might need urgent medical attention. Discuss what they recommend for coordinating with a doctor or other health professionals if your eating-related symptoms have physical consequences. Clarifying these points early helps you know how a clinician will work with medical teams when needed.

Also talk about how sessions are typically structured for panic-related work and whether they offer tools you can use between sessions for managing intense episodes. Ask about session length, expected frequency and any homework or skills practice they commonly use, and whether they tailor those elements to people who are also addressing eating, food or body image concerns. If you anticipate needing language support, check the profile for languages listed and ask how they manage interpretation or multilingual work if that is important to you. These conversations are about fit and safety planning rather than about guarantees, and they help you make an informed choice about who to contact from the listings.

How to compare profiles by focus areas, languages, credentials and therapeutic style

Use the profiles you see on this page as a set of comparison points. Start by noting which clinicians list panic-related concerns along with eating, food or body image in their focus areas. Look for profiles that describe the kinds of experiences you want to address - for example, profiles that mention panic attacks in social or mealtime contexts, or that discuss anxiety linked to body image - and consider the language they use about goals and progress. That language can give you a sense of whether the clinician frames their work around symptom management, coping skills, body image exploration or integration with medical care.

Next, compare credentials and professional standing as presented on profiles. Distinguish academic degrees from the regulatory or membership status tied to practice in your country. If the profile lists approaches you recognize, remember to ask the clinician directly about how they integrate those approaches in practice, since a listed approach is not the same as verified specialization. Finally, reflect on therapeutic style - some profiles describe a direct, skills-focused approach while others emphasize exploratory or relational work. If a clinician mentions working with people who face both panic and eating or body image concerns, ask for examples of how they balance those priorities. These comparisons will help you identify a small number of profiles to contact so you can learn more about fit and next steps for your care.