Tips for Panic Attacks and Dealing with AnxietyArticle by Sian Are there any truly effective tips for panic attacks? Are there any tips for dealing with anxiety? Is there a link between anxiety, panic attacks and IBS? My view, and also the view of the several doctors I have seen over the years, is that yes, there definitely is.
There are few people in the world today who do not suffer anxiety. Indeed we might have to trek to a remote llamasary in the Himalayas to find one. Many people suffer from panic attacks. My Panic video on YouTube has been watched more than any other with over 22,000 views so far. We are much less alone than we think. At the end of this article I will recommend some tips for panic attacks which I have found effective in a greater or lesser degree.
Anxiety and Panic Attacks Even if we are fortunate enough not to have money worries, relationships, the loss of loved ones, and concern about our own health, or other people's, the problems of the world itself, all create anxiety and stress within us. Anxiety is a continuous low-grade worry, although it can be acute, but the condition is an ongoing one, we are anxious continually, day after day. There is little difference between stress and anxiety, although stress can lead to anger. Panic attacks, in contrast, are an explosion of fear and adrenaline which come upon us without warning and are severe. Throughout this article I aim to give you plenty of tips for panic attacks and how to deal with them.
Tips for Panic Attacks 
The symptoms of anxiety all devolve from one thing: worry.We worry, and sometimes many worries blend into one to create a constant feeling of fear, nervousness, edginess, jumpiness (I have gone through phases where I have jumped out of my skin when the phone rang) Our blood pressure is probably higher, our heart rate swifter, our breathing quicker and more shallow. Perhaps the anxiety affects our digestive systems, causing feelings of nausea, or heartburn, it may lead to episodes of diarrhea. It can cause tenseness in our necks, headaches and muscles. I went to the doctor once certain I was having chest pains - and I was, but they were nothing to do with my heart. The GP explained to me that I was so tense I was locking my muscles across my chest without realizing it.
Tips for Panic Attacks 
The symptoms of panic attacksPanic attacks are far more acute and the symptoms can be so alarming that more than one person has ended up in the ER, believing they were suffering from a stroke or heart-attack. I received several messages asking for advice on tips for panic attacks through my YouTube video from both men and women all who were so terrified that they had called for an ambulance. In a panic attack, the heart-rate increases dramatically, which is due to the rush of adrenaline necessary to the ' fight or flight ' mechanism which is an evolved response to threat or danger. The blood rushes from our head, resulting in feelings of dizziness, vertigo, a buzzing or tingling. We may experience a sense of 'otherness' or unreality, pains in our chest, and the tingling feeling may also spread to the rest of our body. Often we hyperventilate, 'over-breathe', too much oxygen goes into our bloodstream, which exacerbates the panic. I have seen some-one lying on the ground gasping, 'I can't breathe!' with paramedics around him, telling him, 'You can, You can!' he was hyperventilating, and I have been in that state myself, the more you try to draw a deep breath, (believing you need one) the less you can, your breathing seems to hit a wall, your lungs seem made of stone, and you cannot force air into them. These are frightening to experience, and the more fear we feel, the more we are likely to panic. Tips for Panic Attacks The fear of panic attacks occurring, the stress of them and the adrenal surge which occurs can lead to quite a severe attack of IBS. I know that mine can be set off by shock, anger or a great upset, and panic attacks are certainly a short but severe shock to the system.
Tips for panic attacks and anxiety There is no easy or infallible way of dealing with a panic attack. People who see their GP's regarding constant anxiety or stress may be given medication to calm them, or anti-depressants. If this triggers IBS, they may be prescribed anti-spasmodic tablets such as Colofac. Panic attacks are more difficult. Some people know that they can occur in certain situations (in my case in crowds) and will go out of their way to avoid those situations. At times, (and this has also happened to me) we find ourselves unable to avoid it, or are somewhere, on public transport, in a meeting, a classroom etc, where it is either impossible or awkward to leave. 
People naturally think ''deep breaths'' when they panic, but too many will lead to hyperventilating, which is why an old but effective method is to breathe into a brown paper bag, which puts carbon dioxide back into the bloodstream. If no bag is available breathing into your cupped hands is an alternative. You need to breath in the air you are breathing out. Do not, under any circumstances, breathe into a plastic bag! this can lead to suffocation. I always felt on the verge of vomiting, when trying to fend off an attack or in the middle of one. I would carry mints around to suck, or a bottle of water to sip.
I have used it before and will say that I do believe it has calming properties, although it is not as strong as a tranquillizer. I offered it to a work colleague once when we had a very busy evening ahead. She started giggling and said she felt wonderful, as did another woman who tried it. It is freely available in drugstores, chemists, larger supermarkets and online and is a Flower Remedy, therefore very safe. One particular method I tried sounds simple, but did carry me through some attacks when I was 'trapped'. 
Silently, as a mantra, I said, over and over again, "I feel GREAT." I would say it in excess of fifteen minutes at a time, repeating it. It sounds ridiculous, as I felt the complete opposite of great, but I was trying to force my mind into thinking I felt well. I was telling it, passionately and strongly, that I did feel great, whatever it might think! It was actually more effective than I thought. Sometimes it is the equivalent of slapping an hysterical person around the face. My mother, who also suffered from panic attacks in her younger days, when at home, used to go to a drawer and start to tidy it, anything, letters, underwear, make-up, a tool-box, to focus her mind on something else. Anything to derail your mind from the full-on , free-wheeling panic is useful. It is hard to believe when in the throes of a panic attack that it will ever end, but they do, and we do survive them. Despite the countless times since my teens when I have believed I would vomit or faint, or both, I never have, no matter how severe the attack. I am left feeling wrung out and drained, but a period of clam and perhaps a short nap will help. Panic attacks also seem to have a pattern where they peak and can be acute, before gradually dipping and fading. This was told to me almost twenty years ago, and from experience I have found it to be true. I hope these tips for panic attacks have proved useful to you. If you have your own tips for panic attacks or severe anxiety, then please do help others by sharing them.
Share it! Return from Tips for Panic Attacks to IBS Self Help
|
A bottle of Bach Rescue Remedy, which can be dropped onto your tongue even as you walk, is one remedy some people swear by.
