Why panic attacks feel like an emergency, even when they aren't
A panic attack recruits the body's genuine emergency system — the same one designed to help you survive real danger — and switches it on when there's no real danger present. That's what makes it so disorienting: your heart pounds, your breath shortens, your chest tightens, your hands may tingle or go numb, and a wave of dread arrives that something terrible is about to happen. Many people experiencing their first panic attack go to an emergency room genuinely believing it's a heart attack, which is a completely understandable response to what the body is telling you.
Understanding this — really understanding it, not just being told it — is often the first meaningful step in treatment. The symptoms are real. The danger they're warning you about is not.
What a panic attack actually involves
The physical wave
Racing or pounding heart, shortness of breath or a choking sensation, chest pain or tightness, trembling, sweating, dizziness, nausea, and numbness or tingling — usually peaking within about ten minutes.
The mental experience
An overwhelming sense of dread, fear of losing control, fear of dying, or a feeling of unreality — as though you or the world around you isn't quite real.
The aftermath
Exhaustion once the wave passes, and often a lingering worry about when the next one might strike — which, over time, can become its own problem.
Panic attack vs panic disorder — an important distinction
Not everyone who has a panic attack has panic disorder. A single episode — often during a period of acute stress, sleep deprivation, or after a frightening event — can happen to almost anyone and doesn't automatically mean a diagnosis. Panic disorder is diagnosed when attacks recur unexpectedly and are followed by weeks of persistent worry about the next one, or by real changes in behaviour — avoiding places, situations, or activities specifically to prevent another attack. That fear-of-fear cycle, more than the attacks themselves, is usually what treatment needs to address.
If a panic attack is happening right now
Try slow, deliberate breathing — a long exhale, a brief pause, then a slow inhale. Remind yourself: "this is panic, it is not dangerous, and it will pass." Ground yourself by naming five things you can see and four you can hear. If chest pain or breathlessness is new, severe, or you're genuinely unsure whether it's panic or a medical emergency, treat it as an emergency and seek immediate medical help — it's always the safer choice.
- Emergency — 112, or go to the nearest hospital emergency department
- Tele-MANAS — 14416 (also 1-800-891-4416) — national, 24/7, English & regional languages
- — national, 24/7, toll-free
How panic disorder is treated
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the first-line, best-evidenced treatment for panic disorder. It works gradually — helping you understand the panic cycle, gently reduce the avoidance that keeps it going, and change how your mind interprets the physical sensations of panic so they stop triggering more fear. Medication can also help, particularly when attacks are frequent or severely disruptive to daily life, and Dr. Heena discusses this openly — what it's for, what to expect, and how long a trial period typically looks like — rather than presenting it as the only path forward.
Some people describe panic in Hindi as ghabrahat (an overwhelming sense of unease or panic) or say "दिल घबराता है" (my heart feels anxious/panicked); in Gujarati, "ગભરાટ થાય છે" describes a similar sudden wave of fear. These everyday descriptions are exactly what a psychiatric assessment listens for — you don't need clinical language to start the conversation.
What to expect from a first consultation
The first conversation with Dr. Heena is unhurried and confidential. She'll ask about what the attacks feel like, how often they happen, whether you can identify any pattern or trigger, and how much they're affecting your daily life — work, travel, social plans. Where relevant, she may suggest ruling out physical causes (thyroid function, cardiac symptoms) alongside the psychiatric assessment, simply to be thorough. From there, a treatment plan is built together, at a pace that respects how exhausting living with panic can already be.
A quick check — does this sound like your experience?
- Have you had more than one panic attack that came on suddenly, without an obvious trigger?
- Do you spend time worrying about when the next attack might happen?
- Have you started avoiding certain places, situations, or activities because of that worry?
- Do the physical symptoms — racing heart, breathlessness, chest tightness — feel disproportionate to whatever is actually happening around you?
- Has this pattern been going on for a month or more?
If several of these feel familiar, a psychiatric assessment can help — both to confirm what's going on and to rule out other causes.
About Dr. Heena Khanna
Dr. Heena Khanna, MBBS, MD (Psychiatry)
Dr. Heena Khanna is a Consultant Psychiatrist practising at Mahavir Health Campus, Ring Rd, Athwa Gate, Surat. She holds an MBBS and an MD in Psychiatry, and is a member of the Indian Psychiatric Society and the Indian Medical Association. Her practice covers anxiety disorders and panic disorder alongside depression, OCD, bipolar disorder, and stress-related conditions, using evidence-based approaches including CBT and, where appropriate, medication. No referral is required to book a first session.