What does a panic attack feel like?
Last updated September 3, 2026.
A sudden wave of intense fear peaking within minutes, with a pounding heart, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, dizziness, tingling hands, chest pain, or nausea. NIMH notes the symptoms are physical enough to feel like a heart attack, and that attacks last from a few minutes to an hour. Panic attacks themselves are not life-threatening, though they are deeply distressing.
What to do
- Ride the wave. Slow breathing and the knowledge that it peaks and passes carry most people through an attack.
- Rule out the physical once. First-time chest symptoms deserve medical review - after that, the pattern becomes recognizable.
- Get treated if they recur. Repeated unexpected attacks plus dread of the next one is panic disorder, and it responds well to therapy and medication.
- Use 988 in a crisis. Call or text 988 in the US, or your local crisis line, any time.
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