I vaguely remember experiencing my first panic attack when I was around 13 or 14 years old. At the time, I knew very little about anxiety and didn’t quite understand the body & mind’s fear mechanism.
So, you can only imagine the sheer terror I felt as waves of panic began to sweep over me while out with family one day, landing me straight to the E.R. as a result.
Although I cannot exactly remember all of the details, I do remember that there was a heat wave in Chicago that day which resulted in dangerously hot conditions. The excessive heat caused me to become light-headed, and triggered an intense migraine with aura complete with flashing in my eyes and a partial loss of vision.
Irrational thoughts
Because this was the first time I had ever experienced something like that, my mind began to race with fear. Was I having a stroke? Was I going to die? The fear I felt was real and completely justified by actual (and scary) physical sensations caused by prolonged exposure to high temps. The panic attack itself however, was directly triggered by irrational thoughts related to how I felt physically.
I had unknowingly created a fear cycle–which tends to occur when an anxiety provoking event causes unpleasant physical and cognitive symptoms and sensations leading to more anxiety. The fear and apprehension of these feelings consequently leads to more symptoms to occur in the body and thus, the fear cycle begins.
The physical and mental manifestations of anxiety and fear can often be enough to drive someone into full blown panic. This was exactly what happened to me on and off for many years after that very first time and continued to occur until I truly understood the anatomy of a panic attack.
Once I learned more about anxiety including my own anxiety triggers, I began to implement calming techniques that helped me deal not only with the scary thoughts, but the uncomfortable physical sensations as well.
Although I have experienced panic attacks in countless settings and locations, the number one place they seemed to occur the most for me was while driving. In fact, back in 2009, my panic attacks had become so unbearable that I could barely drive without having one (read about how I dealt with it here).
Although my philosophy has always been to “feel the fear, and do it anyway”, I know first hand how terrifying AND paralyzing a panic attack can feel. So although you CAN and should allow the feelings to come and pass (without adding more fear triggered by apprehensive thoughts), there are times when you just won’t want to and that’s O.K. too.
These 4 techniques have helped me personally deal with some of the most debilitating panic attacks including the physical and mental sensations that go along with it. I’m talking numb hands, depersonalization, dizziness–you-name-it-I-had-it—-type of feelings.
The best part? they can be done anywhere, including while you’re driving.
Tapping.
This holistic healing technique combines principles of ancient Chinese acupressure with modern day psychology creating a highly effective therapy known to resolve a wide variety of emotional issues including anxiety & panic.
The process involves using the fingertips to tap on certain meridian points on the body while focusing on negative feelings and thoughts.
Tapping helps to calm the nervous system and restore energy balance in the body.
Thought-Stop-Thought-swap method.
During a panic attack, our mind races with thoughts moving so fast that we don’t even have time to process whether they are real or not.
This is when it becomes crucial to “interrupt” negative thoughts and quickly replace them with positive, more realistic thoughts and ideas.
The fastest way I’ve learned how to do this was to literally yell “STOP” in my mind and begin to think (or speak) the polar opposite of whatever it is that’s scaring me. Learn more about how to do this here.
Grounding.
This process is a technique which helps to bring and keep someone in the present moment. There are countless grounding techniques which can be used just before or even during a panic attack.
What I used to do (especially while driving) was choose a particular color in my mind, and begin to point out and notice objects, people, or cars with that same color.
I cannot tell you how many times this method kept me distracted during moments of intense fear and panic by bringing me to the present moment and redirecting my attention.
Humming.
I’ve talked about this before as a form of mindfulness and meditation, and for good reason. I know it sounds silly to hum, but doing so, especially during a panic attack can help to drastically decrease the symptoms and even stop the panic in it’s tracks.
Humming helps to activate the parasympathetic nervous system as well as decrease muscle tension in the body. The humming noise you make can be just a low mono-toned hum or a certain tune you enjoy. I find keeping it simple gives me the best results.
Identifying core fears
Although these methods all worked during a panic attack, it wasn’t until I learned about anxiety and identified my personal triggers and core fears that I stopped having frequent panic attacks.
There are many common core fears (fear of death, embarrassment, rejection, etc…) that can cause overwhelming feelings of stress, fear, and panic so It’s important to understand what your triggers are so that you can get to the root of the problem.
Panic attacks don’t have to take over your life. And although it doesn’t always feel like it, YOU are in control of your thoughts. Always.