i had panic attacks bad and as a last ditch effort to resolve them i quit drinking it took some time but in time things started to settle down . i was a lot like you afraid to go out. i was afraid to drive worried i'd have a panic attack and kill someone etc.. things got better the longer i stayed sober. at 4 years sober i still have anxiety issues and if i'm not careful things can still spiral into panic but most of the time things are ok and far far better then they where back in those days. I'm happy it was as bad as it was becuase it makes me not ever wanna go back to that again. But I couldnt tell you that i'd say that at the time it was miserable.
I dont blame you for leaving yoru job its a horrible struggle to hold down work while dealing with this kinda stuff. I somehow managed to keep my employment I have no idea how. but i wrok from home so they probably never picked up on just how bad things where for me since no one ever saw me. I just had to fake it for 5 or 10 min here and there on the phone.
hang in there it will get better and ease up.