Panic Attack Disorder

If you have suffered from frequent intense experience of panic attacks then you might recognise this statement.

“I know it’s silly really, but when I am in a panic attack I totally believe I am going to go crazy”.

You may be reading this and thinking “I recognise that sentence, but not the going crazy bit”. Yes you are right probably your perception is that you are going to faint, or people will think I am nuts, or probably even; I’ll become uncontrollable and hurt someone or do something stupid.

Whatever your perception is, the point remains.

Your perception of what will happen to you has become the single biggest reason your experience of panic attacks keep coming back to hunt you.

In fact the exact thing you are doing in order to keep your perceptions from occurring is the exact thing that is intensifying your panic attacks.

So If your perception is I am going to go crazy. You might believe the only way to stop this from happening is co control yourself by stiffening up your body so that you don’t shake too much.

Unfortunately the very process of stiffening yourself up is only causing you to feel more tense which may then be causing you to feel wheezy. At this point you may feel even more likely to go crazy. So you stiffen up all the more. The cycle continues until the attack passes.

Now you believe that it’s you stiffening up process that has saved you from what you feared might happen. But the unintended and unforeseen outcome is that panic attack is now becoming a bigger and bigger frightening beast in your mind as each experience of panic passes.

Maybe your perception is that you won’t be able to control yourself when you have a panic attack, so you taught yourself to hold on to a table, wall in attempt to stop yourself.

Or maybe you have learnt to lie down on your back to cope because you feel you might pass out knock your head and die

Whatever your perceptions or actions are, the point remains. The action you are taking may provide you with an immediate temporary sense of relief, but that’s all you get.

Panic attack comes knocking at the door even more ferociously the next time.
So what can be done instead?

Actually if you are experiencing panic attacks regularly, then you already have the answer. You will break through panic attack if you stop doing exactly what you do to cope.

Actually do nothing. Absolutely nothing and you will find that the experience of panic attack just floats away harmlessly. Of course you will initially feel terrified, that is normal. Stick with the process and it will work wonders.

(Please note that people who experience regular drops in their blood pressure level are advised to only try this out in the presence of a trained specialist)