DEALING WITH PANIC ATTACKS

If you have panic attacks, it may help to comfort you
that you are not alone! You’re not even one in a million. In
America, it is estimated that almost 5% of the population
suffer from some form of anxiety disorder.
For some, it may be the infrequent panic attacks that
only crop up in particular situations-like when having to
speak in front of others, while, for other people, it can be so
frequent and recurring that it inhibits them from leaving
their home. Frequent panic attacks often develop into what
medical physicians refer to as an “anxiety disorder.”
There are many ways of coping with an anxiety
disorder. Some may not work for you, but others just
might. It helps to know some of the most common coping
techniques for dealing with panic attacks when they begin.
Your first step is to recognize when a panic attack is
about to begin. When you have enough of them, you start
to really pay attention to the tingling sensation, the
shortness of breath, and the disconnection from the real life
around you.
Many people I talk to wonder what that disconnection is
like. They have a hard time understanding it. Those of us
who have panic attacks are all too familiar with it. It’s like
you can look at a solid object and see that it is there. You
know it’s there, but a part of your mind doubts that it really
IS there.
You may find yourself reaching out to touch that object
just to be sure. You feel like you’re not a part of the world
around you. It’s as if you are just a spectator in your own
life with no control over anything around you.
Believe me, this is a horrible feeling.
So how do you start trying to combat your panic
attacks? What if I told you the trick to ending panic and
anxiety attacks is to WANT to have one. That sounds
strange, even contradictory, doesn’t it? But the want really
does help push it away.
Does this mean that you should be able to bring on a
panic attack at this very moment? Absolutely not! What it
means is that when you are afraid of something – in this
case a panic attack – it will more than likely appear and
wreak havoc. When you stand up to the attack, your
chances of fending it off are much greater.
If you resist a situation out of fear, the fear around that
issue will persist. How do you stop resisting–you move
directly into it, into the path of the anxiety, and by doing so
it cannot persist.
In essence what this means is that if you daily
voluntarily seek to have a panic attack, you cannot have
one. Try in this very moment to have a panic attack and I
will guarantee you cannot. You may not realize it but you
have always decided to panic. You make the choice by
saying this is beyond my control whether it be consciously or
sub-consciously.
Another way to appreciate this is to imagine having a
panic attack as like standing on a cliff's edge. The anxiety
seemingly pushes you closer to falling over the edge. To be
rid of the fear you must metaphorically jump. You must
jump off the cliff edge and into the anxiety and fear and all
the things that you fear most.
How do you jump? You jump by wanting to have a
panic attack. You go about your day asking for anxiety and
panic attacks to appear.
Your real safety is the fact that a panic attack will never
harm you. That is a medical fact. You are safe, the
sensations are wild but no harm will come to you. Your heart
is racing but no harm will come to you. The jump becomes
nothing more than a two foot drop! It’s perfectly safe.
Anxiety causes an imbalance in your life whereby all of
the mental worry creates a top-heavy sensation. All of your
focus is moved from the center of your body to the head.
Schools of meditation often like to demonstrate an example
of this top-heavy imbalance by showing how easily the body
can lose its sense of center.
The key to overcoming panic attacks is to relax. That’s
easy to say but difficult to do. A good way to do this is to
concentrate on your breathing making sure it is slow and
steady. One of the first signs of a panic attack is difficulty
breathing, and you may find yourself panting to catch a
breath. When you focus on making those breaths even,
your heart rate will slow down and the panic will subside.
Breathing more slowly and deeply has a calming effect.
A good way to breathe easier is to let all the air out of your
lungs. This forces your lungs to reach for a deeper breath
next time. Continue to focus on your out-breath, letting all
the air out of your lungs and soon you'll find your breathing
is deeper and you feel calmer.
Ideally, you want to take the focus off the fact that you
are having a panic attack. Try to press your feet, one at a
time, into the ground. Feel how connected and rooted they
are to the ground.
An even better way is to lie down with your bottom
near a wall. Place your feet against the wall (your knees are
bent) and press your feet one at a time into the wall. If you
can breathe in as you press your foot against the wall, and
breathe out as you release it, it will be more effective. You
should alternate between your feet. Do this for 10 - 15
minutes or until the panic subsides.
Use all of your senses to take full notice of what you
see, hear, feel, and smell in your environment. This will help
you to remain present. Panic is generally associated with
remembering upsetting events from the past or anticipating
something upsetting in the future. Anything that helps keep
you focused in the present will be calming. Try holding a
pet; looking around your room and noticing the colors,
textures, and shapes; listening closely to the sounds you
hear; call a friend; or smell the smells that are near you.
Many people strongly advocate aromatherapy to deal
with panic and anxiety. Lavender can have an especially
calming and soothing effect when you smell it. You can find
essential oil of lavender at many stores. Keep it handy and
take a sniff when you start feeling anxious.
Try putting a few drops of lavender essence oil into
some oil (olive or grape seed oil will do) and rub on your
body. Keep a prepared mixture in a dark glass bottle for
when you need it. You can even prepare several bottles,
with a small one to carry with you.
Other essential oils known to help panic and panic
attacks are helichrysum, frankincense, and marjoram. Smell
each of them, and use what smells best to you, or a
combination of your favorite oils mixed in olive or grape
seed oil.
You may want to prepare yourself BEFORE a panic
attack happens. When you're not in a panicked state, make
a list of the things that you're afraid will happen. Then write
out calming things that tell you the opposite of your fears.
Then you can repeat these things to yourself when the panic
starts to come.
Prepare a list of things to do in case of panicked
feelings, and it will be ready for you when you need it. Fill it
with lots of soothing messages and ideas of calming things
to do. I find this to be a very helpful tool and am never
without my small notebook that has these positive
affirmations in it.
Panic can be a very scary thing to go through,
especially if you're alone. Preparing for when the panic
comes can really help reduce the panic, and even sometimes
help to prevent it.
Another great tool to combating anxiety and stress is to
use visualization.