By ABC News’s chief national correspondent, an unflinching look at panic attacks by a reporter whose career was nearly derailed by them, offering readers a guide to making a truce with their warring minds.
Matt Gutman can tell you the precise moment that his life was upended, even if he can’t quite remember it. Reporting live on Kobe Bryant’s death by helicopter crash in January 2020, Gutman found himself in the throes of an on-air panic attack—and not for the first time. The truth is that Gutman had been suffering panic attacks in secret for twenty years: gut-wrenching episodes that left his vision constricted, his body damp, his nerves shot. Despite the affliction, he had managed to carve out a formidable career for himself, reporting from warzones and natural disasters before millions of viewers on “Good Morning America” and “World News Tonight.” He had always managed to “punch through” his panic, his TV appearances kinetic and often unforgettable.
But Gutman’s January 2020 broadcast was noteworthy for all the wrong reasons. In his panicked state, he miscast the reality of the crash. His blunder would lead to a month-long suspension, not to mention heaps of shame and regret for the hurt he had inadvertently caused.
It was a wake-up call. Gutman’s panic attacks were too much for him to bear in secret. He needed help.
So begins the author's personal journey into the science and treatment of panic attacks. He would talk to the world’s foremost scholars on panic and anxiety—they would show him that his mind wasn’t broken, merely in need of recalibration. He would consult therapists and shamans, trying everything from group treatment and CBT to ayahuasca and psilocybin. And he would take a hard look at the way the trauma of his youth—including his father’s death in a plane crash at 42—still reverberated inside him.
Unsparing, perceptive, and often funny, this is the story of a panic sufferer who decided to take on the monster within. Filled with wisdom and actionable insights, it’s both an inspirational journey and a roadmap—if not toward a singular cure, then to something only more worthy: peace of mind.
“No Time to Panic is a necessary book. Brave, reassuring, and practical, Matt Gutman candidly shares his own journey of empowerment and healing which will be a balm for anyone who has ever suffered panic attacks and who longs to be released from their grip.” —Dr. Nicole LePera, author of How to Do the Work
“This is a brisk and gripping read from a courageous author. As somebody who has also suffered from public panic attacks, I found this book both triggering and deeply reassuring. If you’re suffering from panic, you’re not alone, and you’re never out of options. Matt takes you into his mind and then into an intriguing world of potential fixes.” —Dan Harris, author of 10% Happier
“Deeply personal and infinitely readable, No Time to Panic both reassures the reader that they are not alone when it comes to anxiety and panic, and offers hope.” —Judson Brewer, MD PhD, author of Unwinding Anxiety
“Revelatory. . . . This is a moving, insightful, funny, and scientifically spot-on manifesto for destigmatizing a tragically common psychiatric disorder.” —Robert Sapolsky, author of Behave
