Just had my first panic attack in a while. I feel like this aniexty is killing me. I’m really feeling sad 😰 I’m going to see my doctor tommorow to discuss meds.
Panic attack : Just had my first panic... - Anxiety Support
Panic attack
Check out the book The Panic Switch by Jeffrey L. Hammes or DARE by Barry McDonagh. I went for 7 years without a panic attack and they have recently returned... it's the worst, but both these books teach a similar technique, which is to basically invite the panic attack to do it's worst, know that it can't hurt you and literally show your body and mind you're not afraid of them by inviting them in. Let the sensations be as intense as they want and then try to make them even more intense. It's intimidating but one of the few techniques I've found to work. Panic is fear and if you let go of the fear by inviting it, you disarm it. Best of luck
I would think addressing the root cause of the fear in the first place would be a better 1st step, then the fear does not have an entryway.
I think the root cause is absolutely something to address along with the many other suggestions you make below, and everyone's situation is different. But sometimes you can get into a cycle of simply fearing the next panic attack once you've had one or fearing the anxiety itself. Removing or mitigating that fear can be an enormous relief and can help you think more clearly about what is causing the fear in the first place. It can be very hard to think clearly when in the throws of anxiety (my personal experience).
Panic attacks are NO fun! I had several when my four children were young and felt paralyzed to do anything about them. Since then I've been on a very eye-opening journey to understand how God created the human body and what can go wrong that prevents us from feeling the peace we crave. The good news is that we do have options for getting better, and a few of those options include getting hormonal testing done by a simple saliva test, changing a diet to fresh whole foods to get all the necessary nutrients (stress depletes magnesium which helps you to relax), exercise, finding the right counselor or group support, and believing things can change.
Each one of these I mention is critical for balancing your chemistry, and each one involves brain activity that plays a huge role in all your bodily functions.
I want to encourage you to take that next step to get some answers to the hard questions of "What can I do to feel better"? Latching on to the right people is key - not everyone will offer the same advice, so we have to be careful on who we listen to. I hope some of this helps.