In the late 1970’s two authors at Columbia University published a paper which described patients with panic attacks (which was eventually named Panic Disorder with or without Agoraphobia). At the annual psychiatric meeting, the top national psychiatrists discussed the nature and medical treatment for panic disorder. This approach was in contrast to psychanalysis for panic disorder; a few wealthy patients had been given years of intense psychotherapy, with mild effectiveness.
When I returned to my office, I met one of my patients whom I thought had Panic Disorder. She was a very impulsive and active woman in her late 30’s; she had three children, was thinking about ending her third marriage, and was juggling three jobs. She was opiniated and irritable. She had unsuccessfully seen many therapists for years, and I was the eighth professional whom she had seen. I told her that she had panic disorder, and I prescribed the medicine.
I saw her again in a week or two, and she talked for 5-10 minutes, without letting me into the conversation. I finally interrupted her and asked how she had responded to the medicine. She reported that the medicine worked quickly and effectively without side effects. She was irritable with me, since she believed that I should have prescribed this medicine a long time ago!! It did not console her that I was one of the first doctors in the Minneapolis region prescribing this medicine. She got better with time, and was able to end intensive therapy, keep her marriage, and be a good parent.
About that time, I treated another woman for panic disorder. She worked for the local NBC television network. She believed that many individuals in Minneapolis with panic disorder were untreated or poorly treated. When NBC called me, I agreed to attend their popular late afternoon show. They interviewed me on the program for 10-15 minutes, and on that show my patient described her excellent response to the medicine.
I felt very happy to be on a popular television program, but my office was not. We got about 350 phone calls from people who wanted treatment for this disorder!! It took a long time to take care of these calls.
Over time, we developed an excellent treatment approach. I would treat with medicine, and a couple of the therapists performed organized group therapy for individual with Panic Disorder. Most patients did very well; many were able to reduce the dosage, some were able to discontinue it, and the education and practice led to reduced fear and anxiety.