Embodiments of a system and method for personal area network (PAN) communication for wearable devices in a wireless network are generally described herein. In some embodiments, a wearable user equipment (wUE) includes processing circuitry and transceiver circuitry. The processing circuitry is to: configure the wUE to enter into an active state; and configure the transceiver circuitry to: scan, in response to entering into the active state, for a Beacon signal from a network user equipment (nUE); upon failing to detect the Beacon signal, send a probe signal to the nUE; and upon detecting the Beacon signal or upon receiving a response to the probe signal, connect to a PAN associated with the nUE.