Panic attacks can affect anyone, at any age. If left unaddressed, they can disrupt a person’s day-to-day activities and become a recurring problem.

But a university-led trial hopes to tackle the surprisingly common disorder through an intensive, online program – in just one week.

Recognising a panic attack

Unlike ongoing stress or anxiety, a panic attack involves a rush of intensity that comes on quickly and peaks within about 10 minutes.

Its sudden effects can lead to sweating, dizziness, shortness of breath and a racing heart – it’s scary, confusing, and can be mistaken for a medical condition.

“Panic attacks can be really scary and quite horrible, because they are physically intense,” said Eileen Stech, who is leading the study at the University of NSW.

“If you don’t know what it is, you might think there’s something wrong with your body or heart,”

Panic attacks are actually the body’s “fight or flight” response being activated, she said. In itself, that’s not necessarily a bad thing,

“Our body needs that automatic response to be able to escape or deal with immediate danger,” she said.

“Unfortunately, in panic disorder, that fight or flight response is being triggered excessively or at inappropriate times, a bit like a false alarm.”

‘Fear of the fear’

While a single panic attack is worrisome, about 700,000 Australians will develop panic disorder – that is, when they’re having frequent attacks.

“We know from research that what keeps panic disorder going is those beliefs about what a panic attack is, and also the way people respond to it,” Ms Stech said.

Often, a person will start to avoid situations where they might have a panic attack. Unfortunately, according to psychologists, this only reinforces the fear.

UNSW psychologist Dr Jill Newby said frequency of attacks can be a marker of the disorder’s severity, but not always.

“Some people might just have one really awful panic attack and then be so afraid of future attacks that they really dramatically alter their lifestyle really quickly,” she said.

“It’s a vicious cycle, where they may have more panic attacks because of that.”

In fact, the causes of the first panic attack are not always important because attacks can happen for all sorts of reasons.

“That’s really what panic disorder is about – that fear of the fear,” Ms Stech said.

How an online program could help

One approach known to help some people with anxiety and depression is cognitive behavioural therapy.

Delivering CBT online and in an intensive format has already been shown to work – but it’s never been tested in combination.

The trial, by researchers from UNSW Science’s School of Psychology and St Vincent’s Hospital, is considered a world-first into this therapeutic approach.

“We’re testing whether we can take that exciting intensive model and deliver it online, so we can reach people in rural and remote areas, as well as people who are too impaired to travel to therapy,” Ms Stech said.

To access the free trial, you need to be struggling with panic attacks, be over 18 and have access to the internet.

Following an initial screening process, eligible participants should commit three to four hours per day on therapy activities for seven days.

The program involves completing online comic-style lessons adapted from the team’s existing six-lesson panic program.

Participants then spend the rest of the time each day putting the activities into practice.

When the week is up, it was vital for the participant to continue the activities on their own and embrace the program as a lifestyle, Ms Stech said.

“What we try do in CBT is help people become less afraid of those body sensations, learn that they’re not in danger, and learn new ways of responding when they do feel panic,” she said.

To apply for the free trial, visit Virtual Clinic.