The best medication varies from person to person. There are a variety of obscure medical causes for panic attacks. Consequently, there are a variety of medications used to treat panic disorders. The best medication for you is the one that best matches your specific medical cause.

Trial and error is necessary. Unfortunately, tests for precise medical causes of panic attacks are not yet practical or commonly available. Since your doctor cannot know the precise cause, the choice of medication is an educated guess. In other words, you may have to try a few medications before finding the one that works best for you.

Ask about dosage. Medications for panic disorder are typically started at a low dosage and slowly tapered up. Sometimes this is done to allow for an adjustment phase, or simply to find the best dosage for you. Some people are naturally more or less sensitive to medications, so the "recommended therapeutic dosage" is not always appropriate for everyone. Often, smaller doses are recommended for elderly persons.

Your goal is to feel closer to normal, not better than normal and certainly not worse than before the medication. If a medication is ineffective, has unacceptable side-effects or makes you feel euphoric, then the medication or dosage are probably wrong for you. Prolonged use of wrong medication or wrong dosage can lead to serious problems, so discuss this with your doctor.

Beware of marketing. The pharmaceutical industry has aggressively marketed medications; in the form of advertisements directed at the public, as well as pharmaceutical representatives that directly speak with our doctors and offer samples. To reduce the risk of being mislead, talk openly with your doctor about how such medications work and how they relate to your individual case.

If a change in medication is suggested ask how the new medication differs from the old. Does the suggested medication address a different cause of attacks? Is the suggested medication simply a newer and more expensive version of something you have already tried? Is there a good reason to change your medication?

Recovery is usually about more than appropriate medication. Even if your panic disorder originated as a medical problem, repeated panic attacks tend to impact your psychology as well; changing your habits of thought or behavior. To overcome such psychological fallout requires deliberate effort. Appropriate psychotherapy can often be helpful.