Can You Die or Lose Control During a Panic Attack? A Bergen County Therapist Explains
A therapist’s perspective on what’s really happening and how to get your life back.
I can’t tell you how many times someone has sat across from me and said, “I thought I was dying,” or “I genuinely believed I was losing my mind.” These are not dramatic statements. When someone is in the middle of a panic attack, that fear feels completely real.
As a therapist in Bergen County working with anxiety, OCD, and panic disorders, I see this every week. Intelligent, high-functioning adults, parents, professionals, students, completely undone by something their body is doing automatically. Many of them have already Googled their symptoms, ended up terrified, and started searching for an anxiety and panic attack therapist near me because they don’t trust what’s happening inside their own body anymore.
Let’s talk about why panic attacks feel so scary, why people become afraid of the panic itself, whether they are dangerous, and how therapy, especially with OCD specialists in NJ and anxiety-focused clinicians, can actually change the trajectory of this experience.
What a Panic Attack Actually Is (and Why It Feels So Extreme)
A panic attack is not weakness. It’s not instability. It’s not you “being dramatic.”
It is your nervous system activating the fight-or-flight response.
When your brain perceives danger, whether real or misinterpreted, it sends a signal to release adrenaline. Your heart rate increases. Your breathing changes. Blood moves toward large muscle groups. Your senses sharpen.
This response is designed to protect you from physical threat.
The problem? The modern threats we experience are usually psychological, stress, uncertainty, intrusive thoughts, bodily sensations, not a predator chasing us. So the body reacts as if something catastrophic is happening, even when you’re sitting in your car, standing in a grocery store, or lying in bed.
And because the physical sensations are intense, your brain tries to explain them.
That’s when the catastrophic thoughts come in:
“I’m having a heart attack.”
“I’m going to pass out.”
“I’m going crazy.”
“I’m losing control.”
“This is never going to stop.”
These thoughts aren’t random. They are your brain attempting to make sense of a surge of adrenaline.
Why Do You Feel Like You’re Losing Your Mind During a Panic Attack?
This is one of the most common questions I get. During a panic attack, the part of your brain responsible for logic and reasoning (the prefrontal cortex) becomes less active. Meanwhile, the amygdala, your threat detector, is highly activated.
In simple terms: Your alarm system is blaring. Your rational voice is temporarily quieter. That combination makes it hard to reassure yourself.
You might experience:
Derealization (things feel unreal)
Depersonalization (you feel detached from yourself)
A sense of impending doom
Clients often tell me, “It felt like I was about to snap,” or “I thought I was about to lose control and embarrass myself.” Here’s what I want you to know as someone who works with this every day: panic does not cause psychosis. It does not make you lose your mind. It does not make you suddenly become dangerous or unstable.
It feels like it might. But feeling is not the same as fact.
Why Are People So Afraid of Panic Attacks?
The first panic attack is often the most confusing.
It comes “out of nowhere.”
Your heart races.
You feel dizzy.
Your chest tightens.
Your vision may blur.
You might go to the ER. Many people do. Tests come back normal. You’re told it’s anxiety.
But the memory of that experience sticks.
Your brain encodes it as: “That was dangerous.”
Now the fear shifts from “What is happening?” to “What if it happens again?”
This is where the real cycle begins.
People start to:
Avoid places where the panic occurred
Scan their body for symptoms
Check their pulse repeatedly
Google physical sensations
Ask others for reassurance
Avoid exercise because of increased heart rate
Leave situations early “just in case”
Over time, the fear of panic becomes more disabling than the panic itself.
I’ve worked with clients whose world shrank dramatically because they were trying so hard to avoid another episode.
This is especially common in individuals struggling with health anxiety or OCD. Many eventually search for an online therapist for health anxiety or begin looking for OCD specialists in NJ because the anxiety morphs into obsessive checking, rumination, or reassurance-seeking.
Can You Die From a Panic Attack?
This is probably the most Googled question about panic. No. You cannot die from a panic attack. Let’s break down why.
Heart Rate:
Yes, your heart beats faster. But it remains within a physiologically safe range. Your heart is built to handle increased rate, think about what happens during exercise.
Breathing:
You may feel short of breath. Often this is due to hyperventilation. But oxygen levels remain normal. In fact, the sensation of not getting enough air is usually caused by breathing too quickly.
Dizziness:
This comes from changes in carbon dioxide levels due to altered breathing, not from lack of oxygen or brain failure.
Fainting
Ironically, fainting is rare during panic because blood pressure typically increases, not drops. Panic attacks are deeply uncomfortable. They are not medically dangerous. I say this gently but clearly in session: your body is not breaking. It is overreacting.
Are Panic Attacks Dangerous?
Physiologically, no. Psychologically, the avoidance that follows can be. When someone begins structuring their life around preventing panic, their world gets smaller. They might avoid:
Driving on highways
Traveling
Restaurants
Social gatherings
Exercise
Work meetings
Being alone
I’ve worked with people who stopped leaving their home because of fear of panic. Not because panic harmed them, but because the fear of panic felt intolerable. That is where therapy becomes essential.
The OCD and Panic Connection
This is something I see frequently in my work with OCD specialists in NJ.
Panic can trigger obsessive doubt:
“What if this means something is wrong with my heart?”
“What if I faint and no one helps me?”
“What if I lose control?”
“What if this is the start of something worse?”
The mind starts problem-solving the sensations. Rumination increases. Reassurance-seeking increases. Checking behaviors increase. Now it’s not just panic, it’s panic plus obsession. This is why accurate assessment matters. A skilled bergen county therapist who understands both panic disorder and OCD can differentiate whether compulsive behaviors are maintaining the cycle.
Why Fighting Panic Makes It Worse
Here’s the paradox that surprises many clients:
The more you try to stop a panic attack, the longer it tends to last.
When you think:
“This has to stop.”
“I can’t handle this.”
“Make it go away.”
Your brain interprets that resistance as confirmation that something is dangerous. Adrenaline continues.
But when you say:
“This is uncomfortable but not dangerous.”
“I’ve felt this before.”
“It will pass.”
The nervous system has space to regulate. Panic peaks and falls naturally. It always does.
How to Calm Myself From a Panic Attack
Notice I didn’t say “how to stop.” The goal is not instant elimination. It’s changing your relationship to the experience.
Here are strategies I teach clients:
1. Name It
“This is a panic attack.”
Labeling activates the thinking brain.
2. Slow, Gentle Breathing
Not dramatic deep breaths, just slower, steadier breathing.
3. Stay Put (If Safe)
Escaping reinforces fear. Staying teaches your brain it’s survivable.
4. Drop the Internal Fight
Instead of “Make it stop,” try “I can ride this wave.”
5. Reduce Reassurance Seeking
Repeatedly checking Google or asking others increases the cycle. Over time, this approach retrains the nervous system.
How Therapy Actually Helps:
When people search for an anxiety and panic attack therapist near me, they’re often hoping for quick relief. What therapy offers is something better: long-term freedom.
Education:
Understanding the nervous system reduces fear dramatically.
Exposure Work:
Gradually facing feared sensations (like increased heart rate) teaches the brain they’re safe.
Reducing Avoidance:
We slowly reintroduce situations that have been avoided.
Addressing OCD Patterns
If compulsions are present, we treat them directly.
Building Tolerance for Uncertainty
Much of panic fear is rooted in “What if?” Therapy builds capacity to live without perfect certainty.
At practices like Clear Light Therapy, treatment often includes ERP and ACT approaches tailored to panic and OCD. Working with a knowledgeable therapist bergen county residents trust makes a difference because treatment is structured, not just supportive.
For those unable to attend in person, working with an online therapist for health anxiety can be equally effective.
A Message From Experience:
I’ve seen clients go from avoiding highways, supermarkets, and social events to traveling, exercising, and living fully again. The turning point is usually not when panic disappears. It’s when fear of panic decreases. When someone says, “Even if I panic, I can handle it,” everything shifts.
Why Does a Panic Attack Feel Like You’re Going Crazy or About to Lose Control?
This is one of the most frightening parts of panic, and it’s also one of the most misunderstood.
People don’t just feel anxious during a panic attack, they feel unsafe inside their own mind. Many clients say things like:
“I thought I was about to snap.”
“I felt like I was going to lose control in public.”
“I thought I needed to go to the ER immediately.”
“I was scared I might do something embarrassing or irrational.”
These fears feel incredibly real in the moment. The intensity of the experience makes people question their sanity, even when they have never lost control before.The reason this happens has a lot to do with how the brain functions under threat.
When the nervous system goes into fight-or-flight, the brain shifts resources away from higher-level reasoning and toward survival. The amygdala, the brain’s alarm center, becomes highly activated, while the parts of the brain responsible for logic, planning, and perspective temporarily go offline.
In simple terms, your alarm system is screaming while your rational voice gets quieter.
This creates several sensations that people interpret as “going crazy”:
1. Racing and Disorganized Thoughts
Adrenaline speeds everything up. Thoughts move quickly and feel harder to control, which people interpret as losing mental stability. In reality, it’s the brain trying to scan for danger as quickly as possible.
2. Derealization and Depersonalization
Many people feel detached from their surroundings or from themselves. The world can feel dreamlike or unreal. This is actually a protective response, the nervous system attempting to reduce overwhelm, but it feels terrifying if you don’t understand it.
3. Urgency to Escape
Your brain believes there is danger, so it pushes you to leave immediately. That intense urge to escape can make people worry they will run out of a store, abandon a meeting, or embarrass themselves. The fear becomes, “What if I lose control in front of everyone?”
What’s important to understand is this: panic attacks do not make people lose control. If anything, people in panic are trying extremely hard to stay in control.
Why Do So Many People Feel Like They Need to Go to the ER?
Panic symptoms closely mimic medical emergencies:
Chest tightness
Rapid heartbeat
Shortness of breath
Dizziness
Nausea
Tingling or numbness
Your brain’s job is to keep you alive, so when these sensations appear suddenly, it assumes the worst. Going to the ER feels like the safest option.
Many people I work with have gone to the hospital at least once before learning they were experiencing panic. Once medical causes are ruled out, the work becomes helping the brain relearn that these sensations, while uncomfortable, not dangerous.
This is especially common for individuals struggling with health anxiety or OCD, which is why many eventually seek out OCD specialists in NJ or an anxiety and panic attack therapist near me after repeated medical reassurance doesn’t fully calm the fear.
Why Does Panic Feel So Bad?
This is another question people rarely ask out loud but think constantly. Panic feels bad because it is designed to feel bad. The fight-or-flight system exists to make you act quickly. If it felt neutral, you wouldn’t respond to danger. The intensity is what makes you pay attention.
During a panic attack:
Adrenaline increases heart rate and muscle tension.
Breathing changes rapidly.
Stress hormones heighten awareness.
The brain searches for explanation and meaning.
All of this combined creates a powerful sense of urgency and dread. The feeling of “something is very wrong” is actually a byproduct of your survival system doing its job too well. The problem isn’t that your body is malfunctioning, it’s that it’s overestimating danger.
Why Understanding This Matters for Recovery
When people believe panic means they are losing their mind or about to collapse, they understandably begin avoiding situations where panic might happen. That avoidance strengthens fear and keeps the cycle going.
In therapy, whether working with a therapist Bergen County residents trust or an online therapist for health anxiety, one of the biggest shifts happens when people understand that panic sensations are safe, temporary, and self-limiting.
At Clear Light Therapy, this education is paired with evidence-based approaches that help people gradually stop fearing the sensations themselves. When the fear of panic decreases, the intensity and frequency of panic attacks usually decrease as well.
FAQ’s
Why do panic attacks feel like I’m dying?
Panic attacks feel dangerous because the body’s fight-or-flight response is designed to prepare you for survival. When adrenaline increases, heart rate rises, breathing changes, muscles tense, and dizziness or chest discomfort can occur. These sensations closely resemble symptoms people associate with medical emergencies, which naturally triggers fear.
The important thing to understand is that the body reacts first, and the mind interprets second. When the brain senses intense physical sensations without an obvious cause, it tries to explain them, often landing on catastrophic conclusions like “something is wrong” or “I’m dying.” In reality, panic is a false alarm. The sensations are uncomfortable, but they are not dangerous.
Can panic attacks cause permanent damage?
No. Panic attacks do not damage the heart, brain, or nervous system. Although the experience feels intense, the body is operating within its normal stress-response system. The same physiological response that occurs during panic also happens during exercise or moments of excitement.
What often causes ongoing distress is not the panic attack itself, but the fear of having another one. Over time, people may begin avoiding situations, monitoring their bodies closely, or seeking repeated reassurance. Working with a bergen county therapist or OCD specialists in NJ can help break this cycle before anxiety begins to limit daily life.
Should I see a therapist for panic attacks?
If panic attacks are causing you to avoid places, cancel plans, constantly check your body, or structure your life around preventing anxiety, therapy can be very helpful. Panic tends to grow when people begin fearing the sensations themselves.
An experienced anxiety and panic attack therapist near me will focus not only on symptom relief but also on changing your relationship with panic. Therapy helps people learn why panic happens, how to respond without escalating fear, and how to gradually return to activities they have avoided.
Does online therapy work for panic and health anxiety?
Yes. Many people benefit significantly from working with an online therapist for health anxiety. Online therapy allows individuals to receive support from their own environment, which can be especially helpful if leaving home, driving, or being in public spaces has become anxiety-provoking.
Evidence-based treatments for panic, anxiety, and OCD, including cognitive and exposure-based approaches, translate very effectively to virtual sessions. For many people, consistency and accessibility make online therapy an excellent option.
How do I calm myself from a panic attack quickly?
The goal during a panic attack is not to eliminate the sensations immediately, but to signal safety to the nervous system. Trying to force panic to stop often increases fear and prolongs symptoms.
Instead, focus on slowing your breathing slightly, relaxing your body where possible, and allowing sensations to rise and fall without resistance. Reminding yourself that panic is temporary and not dangerous helps reduce the secondary fear that keeps the cycle going. Over time, learning how to calm myself from a panic attack becomes less about control and more about allowing the experience to pass.
Can you go crazy during a panic attack?
No. A panic attack cannot make you “go crazy.” This is one of the most common fears people have, especially when panic feels overwhelming or unfamiliar. During a panic attack, your nervous system is in a heightened state of alarm, which can make thoughts feel fast, intense, or hard to organize. Because the experience feels so extreme, people often interpret it as losing their mind.
In reality, panic attacks do not cause psychosis, personality changes, or loss of sanity. The brain is reacting to perceived danger, not breaking down. Once the nervous system settles, thinking returns to normal. Many people who seek help from OCD specialists in NJ or an anxiety and panic attack therapist near me are relieved to learn that this fear itself is a symptom of panic, not a warning sign.
Can you lose control during a panic attack?
Panic attacks create a strong feeling of losing control, but people do not actually lose behavioral control. In fact, most people become more controlled during panic because they are trying so hard to manage their symptoms or avoid embarrassment. You may feel an urge to escape, sit down, or leave a situation, but panic does not make people act unpredictably or dangerously. The fear of losing control is part of the body’s fight-or-flight response, not evidence that control is actually being lost.
Can you lose your mind from anxiety or panic?
No. Anxiety and panic are extremely uncomfortable, but they are not harmful to the brain. Panic does not cause permanent mental illness or cognitive damage. The sensation of “I can’t think straight” happens because adrenaline temporarily shifts brain resources away from reasoning and toward survival. Once the panic subsides, cognitive functioning returns to baseline. Understanding this is often a turning point in therapy, especially for individuals struggling with health anxiety or OCD-related fears about mental stability.
Will I embarrass myself during a panic attack?
This is a very common fear. Many people worry they will faint, scream, cry uncontrollably, or draw attention to themselves. In practice, most panic attacks are far less visible to others than they feel internally. People experiencing panic are usually able to continue functioning, even if they feel uncomfortable. Others may notice that someone seems anxious, but they rarely interpret it as instability or loss of control. Therapy often focuses on reducing the fear of embarrassment, because that fear itself keeps panic cycles going.
Will people think I am mentally unstable if I have a panic attack?
Most people will not interpret a panic attack as mental instability. Anxiety and panic are very common human experiences, and many people have experienced something similar themselves. The fear of being judged often says more about how harshly someone is judging themselves than how others are actually perceiving them. Working with a therapist Bergen County residents trust can help reduce this fear by addressing the underlying beliefs about anxiety, control, and self-image. As people learn to respond differently to panic sensations, confidence naturally increases and the fear of being judged decreases.
