Effective Panic Disorder Treatments

The good news is that there are panic disorder treatments. People who suffer from it do not need to feel hopeless or helpless. Panic disorder treatment may involve medication and professional counseling therapy or a combination of both.

Doctors may prescribe medications to relieve the symptoms of panic disorder most especially in severe cases. However, it is important to make it clear that these medicines are for temporary relief from the symptoms and not a cure to panic disorder entirely. These medications include benzodiazepines, which are anti-anxiety medicines that provide quick effect. If taken during a panic attack, it could give rapid relief from the symptoms.

Other forms of panic disorder treatment medicines are anti-depressants and meta-blockers. It takes several weeks before these types of drug to begin to work, so it is advisable for the person suffering from panic disorder to take them continuously and not just during an episode of panic attack.

Tranquilizers are anti-anxiety drugs that relax the central nervous system. Its calming effect relieves the symptoms of panic disorder but is not a full panic disorder treatment.

However, these medicines can develop harmful addictive effects, which may make it difficult for the person taking them to stop once he has started. Due to this fact, it is important to note that these medications are not recommendable for all panic disorder patients as they may cause more harm in the end.

The most effective panic disorder treatment is what professional counselors call Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). It is the most effective treatment for anxiety disorders in general, including panic disorder, phobia, and social anxiety disorder as it provides a longer and lasting relief. It addresses the false or negative patterns in the way a person perceives the world and himself. Cognitive therapy deals with negative thoughts that lead to anxiety and behavior therapy deals with behavioral reaction to certain situations that cause anxiety.

The basic belief of CBT is that our thoughts affect how we feel so it is not the situation where we are in that determines how we feel but how we look at that particular situation. The therapy helps the person identify his negative thoughts about a particular situation, challenge those negative thoughts by analyzing irrational beliefs and try to establish a more realistic perception and change those negative thoughts into positive and realistic thoughts that could change that way he treats anxiety causing situations.

There is no instant cure for panic disorder. It involves a commitment to the process of panic disorder treatment.