Panic attacks are a very unpleasant experience, they can appear anytime and anywhere, are observed in cases of depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder and even in high stress situations, knowing how to deal with a panic attack is the first step to overcome it, because there are different strategies to deal with this situation and stop living conditioned by the fear of a new attack appearing.
First, let’s start by explaining what a panic attack really is, then we’ll share strategies to get rid of the panic attack if you suffer it, we also want to introduce you to some ideas to avoid panic attacks, because prevention is as important as action in times of crisis.
- Panic attack is the natural and innate response of our mind-body to a situation of vigilance or danger (Tully et al.
- 2017) What happens is that the person accumulates anxiety and stress for a while.
- And when a stimulus occurs that his brain detects as dangerous.
- All that tension is released and the panic attack occurs.
The problem with panic attacks also lies in the fact that the signals that the brain detects as dangerous are not really dangerous, for example, seeing a lot of people on the street, your boss calls you for a meeting, your mother calls you and comments on unpleasant family issues, etc.
In some situations, being faced with aphobic stimulus (object/situation) that causes us a lot of fear or anxiety is what triggers the alert system and, therefore, the panic attack, which remains an intense scary reaction.
The limbic brain system is responsible for implementing the innate response to danger, which is nothing more than great bodily activation (if necessary to flee) and the intensification of the senses (to better understand the danger).
All this tension and activation of the sympathetic system is very unpleasant and is accompanied by thoughts of death and imminent risk, when all this happens and the person does not know what happens to him, begins to think that he will die or are going crazy It is an internal experience etched in your memory.
With this, the next time the person is in a situation similar to that of panic attack, they will be very afraid of having another attack and therefore the avoidance behaviors that are present, for example in agoraphobia, will occur.
“The problem with panic attacks also lies in the fact that signals that the brain detects as dangerous don’t actually pose a danger.
Attention control is very important in panic attacks (and generally in any anxiety situation), so as soon as you notice that symptoms of a panic attack begin to appear, try to use distraction strategies. your attention to positive and relaxing thoughts.
As a strategy to facilitate this control of attention, you can use controlled breathing (reduce anxiety levels), read, listen to music, talk to someone on the phone, transport your mind to a safe place, among other measures. A panic attack is essential to not fuel the sense of danger itself, so anything that distracts and distracts you can be effective.
However, when you notice that symptoms begin, it is also recommended to go to a quiet place, where you can be isolated without being disturbed, often the people around us try to help and without wanting to cause more anxiety.
Many people are embarrassed: they are aware that nothing really happens and they feel very weak because they cannot control certain alarm signals that they know are not justified, being surrounded by people during an attack can cause them to struggle to hide their symptoms. indirectly lead to its intensification.
Similarly, the best way to deal with a panic attack when you can’t stop is to think it’s not dangerous, it’s going to happen. Controlled and diaphragmatic breathing should be practiced to avoid hyperventilation that can be caused by shortness of breath.
When a person feels like they are drowning, they try to breathe more intensely and, in the end, end up feeling dizzy because they have brought too much oxygen to their body.
In this sense, you can always carry a paper bag to breathe if you can’t perform a controlled breath during anxiety, you can also carry notes in your wallet with a series of phrases, ideas or written instructions for times of crisis, so you can not wonder what to do in the most difficult moments of the attack.
Remember that the secret is to try to make your mind work more slowly and let your thoughts cease to be your body.
“As soon as you notice the onset of symptoms of a panic attack, you should use distraction strategies as soon as you notice the slightest presence of activation, nervousness or thoughts of fear/danger.
Here are three ideas that can help us prevent a panic attack
Finally, remember that panic attacks are ephemeral and not dangerous, even if your mind wants to suggest otherwise, we’re talking about a problem that has a solution and also requires the attention of a professional, including a clinical psychologist who will introduce you to more tools. or help you integrate the ones we present into your life.
There are different models of psychological treatment that are very effective, if this is your case do not get discouraged and ask for help.