It can be extremely difficult to stop panic attacks once they’ve started, but there are 3 quick tips that I’d like to share with you that work wonders at stopping a full blown panic attack.
The first tip is called “The Paper Bag Trick.”
Have paper bags with you all the time, or strategically placed around your house. Alternate your breathing 30 seconds breathing into the bag, 30 seconds breathing normally. Do this during an attack, or if you feel an attack is on its way.
The image of someone with anxiety disorder sucking in air from a paper bag has become a bit of a clich , but it’s a proven method to stop panic attacks, and that’s exactly what we want.
The second of the 3 tips I’d like to show you today is all about having noise distractions during a panic attack.
Next time you have a panic attack, turn on your stereo or TV, and make sure the sound is up pretty high. You might also wnat to try listening to music via earphones or headphones.
When you’re having a panic attack it’s very easy to feel like you’re losing control (and losing your mind!). In a silent room this sensation is magnified many times. Sounds in the room will help to “ground” you in reality and stop that sickening feeling of losing touch with the world.
And if you happen to experience depersonalization as part of your anxiety you’ll notice that this tip helps to reduce that too, which is a great bonus.
The third tip is called “Reassure Yourself Out Loud.”
I made the mistake of only reassuring myself “in my head” when I wanted to stop panic attacks, which is completely ineffective. Something very different happens when you hear your own voice. The reassurance is much more “real.”
I noticed that the thoughts that only existed inside my head didn’t work well at all, and in some cases they actually made me feel worse.
“Out loud” thoughts are much more powerful, and the panic finds it much more difficult to overpower them the way it overpowers your “in your head” thoughts.
So whenever a panic attack strikes from now on, tell yourself out loud that this is just another panic attack like all the others, and that it will soon be gone and you’ll feel safe and calm again.
Here’s a 4th bonus tip for you:
After you’ve had a panic attack, take a minute or two to write down how and what you thought during the attack. You can also use a voice recorder for this, instead of a pen and paper personally, I use a voice recorder, and it works very well.
If you do this a few times, you’ll soon realize that your attacks are all very similar, and all follow the same patterns.
Once you have your written notes or your voice recordings you can have them with you so that you can refer to them during future panic attacks. You’ll know where your mind and your panic are going before they even go there.
This can almost single-handedly stop panic attacks because knowing in advance where your panic and anxiety are going takes all the terrifying unknowns away.
With your notes by your side, or your voice recording playing, you take the frightening unknowns away from your panic attacks, and that takes away a lot of their power too.
The idea} of getting to know youe anxiety and panic through note-taking like this is a new one, but it works incredibly well, and I hope you give it a [shot along with the other 3 tips you’ve also learned.
tips for panic attacks