The crushing weight of a panic attack is overwhelming enough, but when it strikes amid the turbulent highs and lows of bipolar disorder, it can feel impossible to find solid ground. Your heart races, your thoughts spiral, and the emotional storm leaves you exhausted and afraid.
While bipolar disorder panic attacks are not officially classified as a symptom of bipolar disorder, they often appear alongside it. Many women experience panic during depressive lows, manic highs, or as a response to stressors that feel overwhelming in an already dysregulated system. This overlap can lead to confusion, misdiagnosis, and added emotional distress, especially when left unaddressed.
At Casa Serena, we understand the complex and deeply personal ways that mood disorders and anxiety can intertwine. In this article, we’ll explore why panic attacks often accompany bipolar disorder, how they can be managed, and how Casa Serena supports women in reclaiming calm, connection, and emotional balance.
The Link Between Bipolar Disorder and Panic Attacks
For women navigating bipolar disorder panic attacks, understanding how these conditions might be linked is the first step toward reclaiming stability. The relationship between bipolar disorder and panic isn’t just coincidental—it’s biological, emotional, and deeply personal. It’s pretty common, with panic disorder occurring in about 1 in 5 individuals who have bipolar disorder.
How they intersect
Bipolar disorder panic attacks commonly occur during emotional extremes. Here’s how:
- During a manic episode, heightened energy, racing thoughts, and agitation can build toward an overwhelming sense of fear or dread, triggering panic.
- During depressive episodes, hopelessness and helplessness can create fertile ground for panic to take root.
- Between episodes, the fear of the next attack may perpetuate anxiety, worsening mood instability.
This co-occurrence doesn’t just intensify symptoms—it erodes daily functioning. Simple tasks like driving or socializing can feel insurmountable when you’re bracing for the next emotional earthquake.
Why it’s often missed
One of the reasons bipolar disorder panic attacks go unrecognized is because their symptoms often overlap with the mood shifts of bipolar disorder itself. A racing heart may be dismissed as part of mania. Tightness in the chest or a sense of doom might be viewed as just another wave of depression. In some cases, medication side effects are mistaken for anxiety, further complicating diagnosis and treatment.
Many women also internalize their distress. Due to stigma or past invalidation, they may downplay panic symptoms or believe they should “just deal with it.” This can delay care and allow panic to quietly take hold.
The unique impact on women
Women are particularly vulnerable to this overlap. Hormonal fluctuations, societal pressures, and trauma histories create a perfect storm:
- Estrogen changes during menstruation, pregnancy, or menopause can amplify mood and anxiety symptoms.
- Trauma roots often underlie both conditions—40-60% of people with bipolar disorder report past trauma.
- Caregiver stress from parenting or eldercare roles strains emotional reserves.
The team at Casa Serena recognizes the nuanced and layered nature of these experiences. We help women make sense of their symptoms, separate out what’s panic, what’s mood-related, and what needs deeper healing, and we offer a safe, supportive place to do that work.
How to Manage Bipolar Disorder Panic Attacks
Managing bipolar disorder panic attacks means addressing both mood stability and the body’s panic response. With the right tools and support, lasting relief is possible.
1. Start with mood stability
A solid foundation makes panic attacks less likely to take hold:
- Medication adherence (with medical guidance) helps regulate the brain chemistry of mood swings.
- Sleep hygiene is essential—even one night of poor sleep can trigger both manic symptoms and panic.
- Mood tracking (through journals or apps) helps spot early warning signs like irritability or sensory sensitivity.
Think of this as building an emotional levee—the stronger your daily rhythms, the better you’ll weather the storms.
2. Panic-specific tools for immediate relief
When panic strikes, these evidence-based techniques can help:
- Grounding: The 5-4-3-2-1 method (name 5 things you see, 4 you feel, etc.) anchors you to the present.
- Breathwork: 4-7-8 breathing (inhale for 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8) calms the nervous system.
- Somatic strategies: Placing a hand over your heart and saying “I’m safe right now” can interrupt the panic loop.
These skills help reset your body’s alarm system to release stored tension.
3. Heal the root causes
Panic is often linked to unresolved trauma or chronic stress. True healing goes beyond symptom management. Here are some ways to help:
- Trauma therapy helps reprocess memories that fuel fear responses.
- Dual diagnosis treatment ensures bipolar and panic are treated together, not as separate issues.
You don’t have to choose between treating your bipolar disorder or your panic—we help you heal both, in a space designed for women’s unique needs.
Why Casa Serena Is a Safe Place to Heal
Healing from bipolar disorder panic attacks requires more than just symptom management—it requires a supportive, understanding environment where women feel safe, seen, and empowered. At Casa Serena, we provide exactly that.
Women-only, community-focused care
At Casa Serena, emotional safety is our top priority. Our women-only model creates a nurturing environment where clients can let their guard down, share openly, and build meaningful peer connections. Community is at the heart of healing, because knowing you’re not alone changes everything. Here, women support women through every step of the journey, creating lasting bonds rooted in shared understanding and strength.
Holistic, dual diagnosis treatment
We recognize that bipolar disorder panic attacks don’t exist in isolation. That’s why our care is integrated and trauma-informed, designed to treat both mood disorders and anxiety together. Our holistic offerings include:
- EMDR & Trauma Resiliency Model (TRM) to reprocess trauma memories that fuel panic attacks.
- DBT Immersion to master emotion regulation for bipolar mood swings.
- Somatic Experiencing to release panic’s physical grip on your body.
- Discovering Wellness and Body-Mind Balance programs to rebuild confidence and self-trust from the inside out.
Each therapy is tailored to support whole-person healing—body, mind, and spirit.
A legacy of compassionate care
For over 65 years, Casa Serena has supported women through some of life’s most challenging and pivotal moments. As a nonprofit, trauma-informed program, our mission has always been rooted in ethics, integrity, and deep care. We don’t just treat symptoms—we honor the full story behind them and walk with our clients toward lasting recovery.
If you’re facing the exhausting cycle of bipolar disorder panic attacks, you don’t have to do it alone. Whether you’re seeking clarity, calm, or connection, our team is here to support you. Call Casa Serena today at (805) 966-1260 to learn how our women-centered programs can help you begin your healing journey.
Related FAQs
Can bipolar disorder cause panic attacks?
While panic attacks aren’t a core symptom of bipolar disorder, the two conditions frequently coexist. The emotional extremes of bipolar episodes can overwhelm your nervous system, triggering panic.
How does Casa Serena help with panic attacks and mood instability?
At Casa Serena, we specialize in treating the intersection of mood disorders, anxiety, trauma, and substance use. Our dual diagnosis program is designed to address both panic attacks and bipolar disorder simultaneously, not in isolation. We use a combination of evidence-based and holistic therapies to provide you with the best outcome toward wellness.
What if I’ve been misdiagnosed before?
Misdiagnosis is incredibly common, especially for women. Many symptoms of bipolar disorder, panic attacks, and trauma overlap, and women are often dismissed, misread, or miscategorized in clinical settings. You may have been told your symptoms were “just anxiety,” or that panic was a side effect of your medications.
At Casa Serena, we take a different approach. We listen. We slow down. We look at your whole story—not just your symptoms. Our team is trained to recognize the nuances of women’s mental health and to create space for clarity, not confusion. If you’ve been misunderstood before, you’re not alone, and you deserve care that sees the full picture.
