What should you do when panic attacks? I CAN REMEMBER MY FIRST ONE. I was twenty years old, and I was visiting a friend from college. It was 3:00am, and I was watching an old re-run of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on late nite. In the back of my mind…my subconscious, even, I knew that there was a stockpile of weapons ready to explode, but I was young and innocent. I wasn’t prepared for what was about to happen next. I was lying down unable to fall asleep (hence the TV show filling the empty space in my head) when I just felt my heart sink like a rock into my chest. My breathing became very short and heavy, like there was no more oxygen in the room left to inhale. My heart rate went through the roof, and I had the overwhelming impulse to run and/or escape.
There was no threat or imminent danger anywhere. However, in my mind and body, there was a wild reaction to something almost sinister. As I ran up the stairs, and was looking for an escape. I thought my heart was going to beat right out of my chest, or stop abruptly. I did what any twenty-year-old boy would do in that situation – I called my mom to tell her I loved her and that “this was it”. What a crazy thing to say and for my mom to hear at 3 o’clock in the morning! I hung up before she could say much, and drove myself to the ER. When I arrived at the hospital, I was drenched in sweat, my heart rate and breathing had returned to normal, and my mind was wondering what in the world had just happened.
There Is Hope
So what should you do when panic attacks? You may understand the shortness of breath, the sweating, the impending sense of doom, or the inexplicable impulse to escape. More importantly, you likely understand the terror and how crazy a panic attack can be. It hits you suddenly, without warning, and leaves as quickly as it came. Many things can trigger panic attacks, and they can happen anytime of the night or day. So what should you do when panic attacks? If you’re reading this right now, hopefully you’ve been able to resonate with something that is in this post. My hope is that you would glean one thing from this: there is hope.
You’re not alone in the fight. You’re not alone in the dark. It may feel like you are. It may feel like you’re going crazy, but you’re not. Your mind is and likely has been building up chemicals and storing wrong thinking patterns that all contribute to a bodily reaction to rid itself of stress. Your brain is literally trying to expel things it knows doesn’t belong, and sometimes an episode of panic accompanied by all its bodily reactions is how it gets the job done. Problem is, it’s a terrible experience and typically causes the brain to get accustomed to this becoming the norm. Once you have one, there’s a vicious cycle of it happening over and over until you feel like you’re going to implode or go insane.
What You Can And Can’t Control
You can’t control what thoughts pop into your mind, but you can always control what you do with those thoughts. We’ve all heard that before, and it’s all well and good until panic strikes. Preconceived notions and game plans seem to go out the window, but that’s not reality. You’re still in control. You decide how you respond to what is happening inside, not the other way around. It’s so easy to just react, isn’t it? It’s easy to throw your hands up in the air and think, “this is it! I can’t do this…I can’t take it anymore”, or something of the like. Let me share a few things you can do to calm yourself and put yourself back in the driver’s seat when a panic attack starts. Ready? Here we go!
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO WHEN PANIC ATTACKS
1. Realize what’s happening and tell yourself it’s going to be okay
When a panic attack starts, we typically know what to expect. We know how terrible it can be, how scary it is, and how much we want it to be over before it even gets started. So why do we seem to always react with the mindset we’ve never experienced it before? Half the fight in this is embracing the beginning of a panic attack and allowing your body to go through the motions. Once you realize what is happening internally, the external stuff is much easier to handle. Whatever you have to do or say to remind yourself that you know exactly what this is. Put your mind at ease knowing that no matter what is happening inside, it will eventually pass.
2. BREATHE
I can’t stress enough how important this is. Sounds kinda silly because we need to breathe in order to stay alive, but we often don’t think about HOW we breathe. When the panic starts, the heart rate increases and the brain tells the lungs that the body needs oxygen – fast. The lungs become responsive to that need, so it’s so natural for us to breathe quick, shallow breaths. Slow down your breathing and take slow, deep breaths. Count to four slowly as you breathe in, then count slowly to four as you breathe out. Within a few minutes, you’ll be amazed at what that does to your body and how it settles down from the panicked state.
3. Get your brain to snap out of it
Just like you have triggers that likely started your panicked state, there are things you can do or tell yourself in order to “snap out of it” or trick your brain into taking your mind off the panic. Try saying to yourself, “I can’t raise my arms”, then actually raise your arms over your head. Maybe it’s telling yourself, “I have to get out of here!” then stay right where you are until the panic subsides. Now, this can be difficult, but if you practice this in a calm state of mind, and focus what’s happening, it will become more habitual when you feel the anxiety and panic starting.
4. Grounding
When panic attacks, one of the best things that has helped me is to try to focus on a practice called grounding. This is basically grounding yourself to your surroundings and what’s happening around you. Along with controlling your breathing, bring your attention to your five senses. What do you see in front of you? Smells in the room? Sounds you’re hearing that you didn’t notice before? (birds, dogs, A/C, car horns, etc.) Feel your feet on the floor against the earth. Wiggle your toes and just try to feel yourself in that present moment. This is just another way to take your attention off of the panic/anxiety and onto what’s happening around you.
5. Relax with exercises
Now, this isn’t strenuous exercise, but relaxation exercise. (Yes, that’s a thing!) Try lying down on a couch or the floor. start with your feet first and point them upward toward your head as hard as you can for about 30 seconds, then relax them completely. Next, try to point them down to the floor, again as hard as you can, for 30 seconds, followed by complete relaxation. Continue to do this, working your way up the muscle groups of the body until you get to the top of your head. At the end, do a complete body tension/relaxation for 30 seconds. The goal here is that when you relax, you should be mentally and physically trying to “sink” into the floor. Take your time with this, and be intentional about it. This helps quickly calm your panicked state of mind and re-trains the brain.
6. Call someone when the panic attack is over
I can’t stress enough how important it is for you to work through your panic attacks and conquer them little by little over time by yourself. If you feel you are in a dangerous situation to harm yourself or someone else, don’t wait. Contact someone right away. If you can remain calm, and try the above tactics to calm down and work through it until the panic attack is over, you might realize you may not need to contact anyone. This small confidence will give you such a positive attitude (which is great in reprogramming a fear-based mentality when dealing with anxiety and panic). Other people are here to help, but you don’t want them to become your crutch or project your panic or anxiety onto them. You can do this!
7. Listen to reassuring music, read Scripture, and/or pray
Many think this should be the first line of defense against panic attacks. The problem is that most people who are having a panic attack need immediate help with calming themselves down first. Once the panic is starting to subside, or you feel like you are in control and tell yourself that, you can turn on your favorite song and/or turn to your favorite verse or chapter in the Bible to remind yourself of God’s promises and faithfulness. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give comfort and understanding as you process and work through what’s happening inside your body and mind. Use it as an opportunity to connect with God and ask yourself (as long as you’re willing to be honest) what’s on your mind, why you’re afraid, or what you possibly need to let go of.
There are many creative ways to help in the battle with anxiety, stress, fear, and panic. When panic attacks, you don’t have to be a victim to it. You don’t have to lie down and believe the lie that you’ll never get victory over this or find relief. God knows exactly what you’re going through, and He wants you to be free from this more than you do. He provides security through His promises and through His Word. For some it will be a switch that flips, and you may never have this struggle again. For others, it could be a lifelong battle that has easier moments and more difficult ones. Allow yourself to be okay if the episode comes, and practice controlling your thoughts instead of being captive to your emotions. Take this verse with you, and remember that there’s always hope!
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
1 Corinthians 10:13