Anxiety & Panic Attacks
When panic strikes it can leave a person in a serious state of despair. In this article, I will be giving you my very best tips to overcome your anxiety and panic attacks fast!.
Common symptoms of panic attacks include a sudden rise in heart rate, shortness of breath, tightness in the chest, trembling and a tightening of muscles. Sometimes people with no history of panic or anxiety attacks can seem to suddenly find themselves in the grips of this terrible affliction and may feel as though there is no way out.
The good news is that for most people experiencing panic attacks there are simple steps you can use to take back control and stop anxiety or panic attacks wreaking havoc in your life.
Understanding the panic response
Understanding what is happening to you when experiencing a panic or anxiety attack is an important first step to recovery. When experiencing panic attacks, it’s easy to think that the symptoms and sensations relating to the panic are the problem itself. In reality, the truth is that the responses are completely natural and in fact are hard wired in to our brains and nervous systems. The symptoms associated with panic & anxiety attacks are all indicators that your brain has perceived a threat and is ready to respond to this threat. For example, a sudden rise in the heart beat and trembling in the hands indicate that your body is likely releasing a large amount of a hormone called adrenaline. Adrenalin is produced by our adrenal glands and is released when signaled by the brain that a threat is present. This threat may even be interpreted as a life or death situation. Adrenaline is quickly released into the bloodstream where it then flows into all parts of the body. The result is the body becoming hyper vigilant and ready to perform one of the basic hardwired survival responses, the fight, flight or freeze response.
Throughout human history this basic survival response has served us extremely well. Imagine being an ancient hunter gatherer and suddenly encountering a wild animal that poses a very real risk to your life. Having a system that quickly supercharges the body and primes a response is a massive survival advantage.
The problem we have when experiencing a panic attack is that most often a person may be simply engaged in their normal day to day activities and suddenly find that they are struck with what seems like panic or anxiety that arises from no where. As just described, the real issue is not the panic, however, is more related to the underlying reason the body is sounding the alarm. Most often, the true reason for the body raising the alarm is below the person’s normal level of awareness.
Understanding the true root cause of an anxiety or panic attack
Our minds consist of both conscious and subconscious aspects. Current scientific evidence suggests that approximately 95% of our brains activity is unconscious. For example, unless you choose to consciously do so, you don’t need to focus on controlling your heart beat or pay attention to how many breaths you take each minute. Your brain is paying attention to all of these aspects and maintains control for you so that you are free to engage in your daily life.
The subconscious mind as always sitting back and paying attention to the things happening inside and outside of your body at any given moment. A good analogy in understanding where panic or anxiety arise from is that your subconscious contains a guard, watchman or a sentry. It is the guard’s responsibility to keep watch and to raise the alarm quickly in response to a perceived threat. When the guard perceives a threat he / she raises the alarm by sending a danger message to the adrenal glands to release adrenaline as described above. The result, you suddenly experience all of the terribly unpleasant symptoms of an anxiety or panic attack.
Unfortunately for the sufferer of panic and anxiety attacks , what constitutes a threat can sometimes be a misinterpretation or over reaction. The real issue is not the panic response, it is understanding why the mind / body feels unsafe and has raised the alarm.
My tops tips to crushing anxiety and panic attacks
Deep belly breathing
When in the grips of an anxiety or panic attack, most often the sufferer will find that the breath becomes shallow, fast and contained to high up in the chest. The first thing you should do when experiencing the onset of panic is to bring your attention to the breath, slow….down…. your…breathing. Focus on really letting the breath fill all the way down to the bottom of the belly and then the chest.
Make a panic attack / anxiety diary to better understand the triggers. By understanding the triggers, you have the opportunity to challenge your perceptions or alter your behaviors in constructive ways that can help reduce your levels of anxiety or panic.
If you aren’t sure what may be triggering the anxiety, start recording a diary. Include the following
-What were you doing at the time
-Symptoms felt
-How long the panic lasted
-What you did in response to the panic.
Regular exercise and movement
It’s important to use your muscles everyday in the form of some sort of movement. It doesn’t have to be vigorous exercise, even a simple 10 minute walk can be extremely helpful. When you move, you help burn up some of the energy produced by spikes in adrenaline. This can also be a helpful technique to deal with the jittery, nervous symptoms that can be associated with an anxiety or panic attack.
A great exercise for anxiety and stress in general is the “ Breathing Squat”
To perform this exercise, stand in an upright position and move extremely slowly! The aim of this exercise is to maintain a resting heart and respiration rate. We refer to this exercise as a “ working in” exercise rather than a “ working out” exercise. Continue to perform the exercise until you feel a sense of calm and ease in your body. This can be done daily as a great movement meditation. This exercise was developed by the Paul Chek. Click here to view his blog post and 10 minute video on how to perform the breathing squat properly.
4. Supplements and Nutritional Support
Anxiety and panic can arise from common and easily treatable nutrient deficiencies. Eat a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables and ethically produced grass fed meats as well as other organic animal products. Avoid or reduce stimulants such as caffeine, alcohol and processed refined foods high in simple carbs, sugars and unhealthy fats.
My top supplement suggestions for anxiety and panic are :
Zinc - a deficiency in zinc has been linked to anxiety disorders. You won’t often hear people talking about a zinc deficiency being related to anxiety and panic attacks however this is one of my best tips.
When purchasing any supplements, make sure you buy from a reputable source. Begin daily supplementation according to the dosage instructions of the specific product. Don’t expect results right away, it may take some weeks before you start noticing a difference and the benefits should continue to accumulate over the course of months
Omega 3 - Omega 3 high in EPA and DHA - This supports brain function and overall health of the brain and nervous system . I highly recommend supplementing EPA & DHA for all of my patients suffering from anxiety disorders. As with all supplements, its extremely important to obtain high quality products. For Vegans and Vegetarians, a great choice is an Algae based EPA / DHA supplement -
Magnesium- Magnesium is an important mineral used for many processes in the body. Magnesium can assist to calm the nerves and reduce excess muscle tension. Anyone suffering with anxiety should be supplementing with Magnesium - Shop Magnesium Supplements here
Switch coffee for Anxiety reducing herbal teas
If you have access to fresh ingredients from your own garden, this will always be supreme! I recommend the following herbs
- Chamomile tea
-Lemon Balm
-Ashwaganda
-Valerian ( for night use before sleep only)
5. Seek Professional Help
If the above tips are not enough to get on top of your anxiety and panic attacks, it’s important that you seek the help of a professional. Anxiety and panic are often disorders often begin to re inforce themselves the more times you experience them. It’s common that someone may literally become anxious about being anxious. Clinical Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy is one of the best ways to quickly get on top of panic and anxiety attacks.
As discussed earlier, the panic or fear response is activated in the subconcious mind. Clinical Hypnotherapy in particular can help you discover the cause and then re write those patterns within just a few sessions.
We offer Clinical Hypnotherapy, Psychotherapy and Counseling support online via voice or video call. Please contact us to discuss further or go to our bookings page to book now.
If you are located in Adelaide, South Australia, we are able to offer in person sessions at our Gawler Clinic.
Whether we see you online or in person, you can be assured that we provide a safe and nurturing environment.