8 Practical Tips To Help In Overcoming Panic Attacks

By Lance Verster

Panic attacks remain very serious psychological conditions that can prove quite jarring for the person that experiences them. When an attack occurs, the feeling can be overwhelming and the duration can be interminable. Some may wonder how to deal with such a problem. Often, the key to overcoming this is following a number of atypical steps that can lead to alleviating the problem. Often, these methods are a far better (and safer) alternative to the common prescription therapies that are utilized.

One of the typical symptoms of any panic attack is a shortness of breath, or hyperventilation. This in itself can be extremely frightening and can also heighten the feeling of panic, making the attack even more severe. The way to stop hyperventilating is to try and take deep, slow breaths whilst counting backwards from ten to zero. It can help if one breaths into a paper bag. Watching the bag inflate and deflate can have a calming influence.

Yoga, the practiced art of meditation, also calls for controlled breathing, so this can be helpful. The stretching movements that are part of Yoga exercises help to relax the body and this is another useful tool against panic attacks. Obviously it may not be practical or even convenient to adopt a Yoga pose when an anxiety attack takes you in a public place, but taking a more relaxed posture and going into controlled breathing can help.

Call someone that your trust. Sometimes, a helping hand can go far. When you are being deluged by the onset of a panic episode, it may prove helpful to call a close friend and talk through the situation. That can sometimes help with overcoming panic attacks greatly. Those that may be in need of someone and have no one available can try another option: joining a support group. Considering this a separate tip in and of itself as support groups can be a great source of inspiration and education. Those that have a deep, personal understanding of the impact can provide helpful insight into means for overcoming the condition. Seeking help from these people is certainly advisable.

Panic attacks are the physical manifestation of stress, worry and pressure. But none-the-less the physical symptoms are very real and very debilitating. Some people even become housebound because they are afraid of suffering an attack when they're out and about. This can sometimes turn into agoraphobia. All to often a panic attack sufferer is not aware of exactly what it is that triggers an attack, but finding out is crucial if further attacks are to be minimized or avoided.

If you are to be successful in overcoming panic attacks, it is necessary to gain a full understanding, not only of the root cause, but how and why it manifests itself. The support group option we mentioned earlier can be very helpful to this end, as can reading and researching the condition on the web.

Some people find that it can help if they can take their minds off the experience during an attack by some sort of diversion; so compiling a list of helpful things to do, or a few quotations or sayings, or even some song lyrics; anything to distract your mind away from the attack itself can be a great help.

There is no shame attached to finding a therapist to help you, and in fact this is just what many sufferers do. A good therapist will be able to help you to isolate the causes of your attacks, and once known, may even be able to cure you, or help you to deal with the episodes in a rational way. - 30437

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