What are some coping methods you use for panic attacks?

@VickyP

This is a really nice topic to share coping methods.

for me personally my favourite coping mechanism is using grounding tools for example -

notice two smells

notice two sounds

notice two things you can feel

notice four things you can see

Sometimes introducing taste can really help if you are struggling that little bit more.

Another technique worth mention is the

The Swish NLP Technique – step by step

it's worth looking up

@rezasophiea

Thank you for sharing these coping techniques. The Swish NPL Technique sounds very interesting and useful for replacing an unfavourable emotion or behaviour with a more useful one! 😃

@rezasophiea

I like that..coming back to reality

@VickyP Thanks for this post Vicky! I think it's helpful to see different tactics and strategies when dealing with something as frightening as a panic attack.

When I'm in the middle of a panic attack, I focus on my breathing. I keep gifs like this...

saved on my phone so I can pull one up at a moment's notice. I've noticed that time is a blurry concept in the middle of an attack. Although I think I'm slowing my breath on my own, it turns out it is still too fast and too shallow. These animations help me stay at a steady and slow pace.

@SecretlyMe

I love calming gifs like that! I'm glad they help you better control your breathing and deal with panic attacks. Thank you for sharing this coping method with us, Secretly!

Yea I got a gift too KOMUSŌ. I haven't consistently tried it, but I'm gonna start. And I like the other post about noticing two smells

, noticing two sounds, noticing four things you can see. And noticing two things you can feel. I like it very much.

@VickyP I usually try to do something that will distract my mind, which can be challenging when you are having a panic attack. But with practice, this does become easier to do, although this tactic does not always work too well especially at night. Because there is not much you can do to distract yourself when trying to sleep, so at that time you could do breathing exercises. All methods of coping with anxiety are valid there is no right or wrong as long as you are safe.

Yep, haven't had one in a long time. I don't think I've ever had a way of getting myself out of it while it's happening. Once it pounces on me, I feel paralyzed. Usually my whole body is out of my control, sometimes I can move my hands. I like this thread, could be useful if I have one again. Thank you for making it and thank you to commenters for adding what helps you

@VickyP Hi Vicky! I enjoy using grounding techniques (listing 5 things I see, 4 things I feel, 3 things I hear, 2 things I smell, and 1 thing I taste) and after I ground from a panic attack I usually focus on self-care or call a friend immediately to have someone there to support me. <3 Thank you for posting this :)

@VickyP

(Cute profile gif...)

I have experienced panic attacks my whole life, another symptom is the "feeling" of neck swelling, week in the knees, like your feet are about to fail you...

I had many methods to deal with them like mind clearing, or counter with anger andrenaline (build up of adrenaline against the very panic attack actually helps in panic attacks)...

Now I am left with only one thing: ride them out or simply ignore and smile at them...

They all say meditate, I do meditate but alot of time people think of meditation as if its sitting down closinf ur eyes and doing yoa, it's not meditation is more then a yoga, it's the way of life we all meditate everyday waking up in morning doing exercises and stuffs, meditation is more then that.

Thanks! This helps a lot to know how people are coping.

I created a safe position on how I sit with my hands in a specific way. When I feel safe I did this often to create a memory.

Now if I have a panic attack I take a seat and fold my hands in that way and focus on my breathing. Seems to shorten the moment quite a bit

Breathing excerses / reminding myself that I'm safe

If my husband is around, his touch soothes me

and once when I was alone and an attack came on, my cat cuddling with me worked (it was the craziest thing, I called my husband and he came home as quickly as possible, just seemed like it was taking forever, but the moment my cat laid down next to me and snuggled in, slowly I began to breathe normal and feel safe.

I have PTSD. It took years to have me diagnosed, after xanax, and valium, and well, the list goes on. Sleep is getting better after finding the right doctor and years of therapy. And I was counselor. I help at the VA sometimes. Not easy, but it's not easy for them either. And like them, I have stared down the barrel of a gun. And found I am just not the type.

It took me a while to study and read when PTSD was first put in the DSM, thanks to the veterans of Vietnam who fought long and hard to get what was called battle fatigue (and many other name) recognised as a disorder. It is not, by the way, "shell shock" although there are similarities.

The panic attacks were so terrifyi8ng to me because then we just did not know much about them, or what to do. (Ok, another Rx....) Finally some long lost psychologists noticed what we now call "triggers." And veterans with PTSD are actually trained to try and recognize them. I had a continual flashback when I was just in the somnambulant state before you fall asleep. Things are blurry. You remind yourself to stay awake and alert. The internal battle goes on until you finally into a full blown panic attack. The room closes in. I see and hear the rotor blades and green panel in front of me, right there, in my room.

Finally, after what might even be years, I studied what the triggers were. And found them. The ceiling fan and the A/C panel that had blinking lights in my open closet door in that half-asleep state, brought on the flashback and panic attacks that followed. I rearranged the room, got off the benzos since I read at times they will actually bring on panic attacks (and depression), and went to the bathroom, out of the enivronment, and learned how to breath properly. Finding a real doctor also helped.

Several who have posted are so accurate about breathing and mainly, recognizing when you having an attack. Watch the thoughts that have long mental images with them, or memories that you want to resolve, but practically, never will. It creates that sprial....

I am doing ok, and I will continue to. I really try not bring up talking about the military because it embargoes the conversation. But just know that your attacks are so similar in a pattern to mine. There is nothing about war that makes the attacks that much different. I learned I deserve to have those feelings. They are mine. They belong to me. It really helps to share what I have learned from them. We had a forum for combat PTSD people (men and women) but the technical support faded when the contributions died. We helped a lot of very troubled people who I hope are still with us. This site has been such a friend for me.

The study of veterans who take their own lives at a rate of 22 a day showed the age breakdown. 64% of them were over 50 years old. But the younger guys are climbing fast. Take ownership of a panic attack and really work on climbing out. You are worth it.

Some good posts here. And a good thread. I will be watching.....lol

@Kurt789. I had a doctor tell me to physically shrug. She said it will help deactivate the fight or flight response.

@carefulPenny8025

I know about the shrug but it does nothing for the oxygen level. Some panic attacks are so deep it takes more than a shrug, for me anyway. But a shrug does work toward lowering the shoulders.

@VickyP I try to do deep breathing and at night I like to do meditation or yoga!

I do some grounding techniques. My favorite one is to notice 5 things I can see around me, 4 things I can touch, 3 I can hear, 2 I can smell and one i can taste. It engages my senses and distracts me from my thoughts and emotions.

Breathe with the shape. De-stress monday. I keep a bag of lavender-scented bath salts under my bathroom sink and I grab those and smell the lavender scent. Anything that slows my breathing down, for slow, deep, breathing in and out for a few minutes. Also, a warm blanket and a glass of water in the winter.

@VickyP

I usually call someone from my family, hold their hand strongly and breathe deeply.

I also drink water, try to go back to sleep (as it happens mostly at the night for me) with some comfy pillows and open my windows.

Hi everyone!

So, I have two coping methods when experiencing a panic attack.

The first one seems like a popular one: the grounding method. I use it to focus on things around me to distract myself. 5 things I can hear, 5 things I can touch and 5 things I can smell. I try and reach 5 for all of them but even just finding one or two can help.

My second method is one a friend recommended to me when she realised that distractions sometimes help me with panic attacks. This is where I recite a speech I wrote for an English class. Because it was a while ago I have to focus quite a lot which helps distract me. But it can be a favourite song, a favourite poem of maybe something you wrote. This one is hard to start when in the middle of a panic attack though and works much better, for me, at the beginning of one.

For me, a panic attack makes me feel like a pariah and lonely, and I will remain unsuccessful and will never find happiness, so I remain nervous and nervous throughout the day and feel my nerves tight, violin cramped. I dont know a coping method to cope with it yet.

Shout to God, pray til it goes away and i come back to my senses

Well.....sometimes I try holding on to the ice cubes in my hands. And clench it tight. & then I try reaching out to someone to vent it off or writing it all dow . But ice cubes do the trick.

deep breathing excercises

Honestly maybe this isn't a great strategy, but I wait it out and move on. It kind of goes in hand with staying in the moment, but I try to keep my breathing normal (for minor panic attacks) and continue what I was doing before as if the attack isn't happening at all

@curvedmanager74 hi, for me, i usually need to talk to someone, or get a hug or something. if that's not possible for whatever reason, i like to listen to music or watch a tv show (although i usually can't really focus on that), and lastly - find something to occupy my mind with, what works best for me is listing stuff or counting something, e. g. i'm really good at remembering people's birthdays, so i'll just try listing all those that i can remember in a moment, or listing songs by a certain artist i love.. these are a few techniques i use 🤍 and of course breathing exercises or meditation!

Usually if I have a panic attack I count to 10 very slowly or I start naming the things around me, it helps every time.

Grounding technique:

U need to name

5 things you can see

4 things you can hear

3 things you can feel with touch

2 things you can smell

1 thing you can taste

I usually try to distract myself with whatever is available, usually music :)

I have safe materials and scents to ground me. I find that I can never remember the normal grounding technique so I do this simplified version. For materials, I mainly use what's around me at the time like grass or a wall, as long as it's solid. For scents, I carry around essential oils, jasmine, pine, again solid scents that tell me that I'm okay

I used to try to distract myself and instantly retreat from what I was feeling. I still do that sometimes. After reading about mindfulness techiniques however, now I try as hard as possible to stay with what I'm feeling, breathe, and accept.

@leesemarie I'm sorry that you are going through that pain alone, i was there and unfortunately i've tried the same techniques. The techniques you are trying to apply are actually increasing your anxiety. What you need to deal with is that you need to discover the thoughts that are behind your anxiety and work on them. In my profile description are some great materials on how you can diminuate your anxiety. I can listen to your story also if you are willing.

@leesemarie

Wow that's awesome 👏

Mindfulness techniques are really good

Hi Everyone! I think this is a great post- panic attacks can be very debilitating so anything that can help control them is much appreciated! I find that taking a shower when I feel a panic attack coming on really soothes me and helps prevent the attack. The grounding technique, which lots of people have sofar commented on really works for me too :) :)

hi! i have a panic disorder so attacks are a pretty big part of my life at this point. i change up what i do depending on the attack, so i have quite a few techniques. the first would be to shock yourself out of an attack. this sounds weird, but putting an ice cube or sour candy in your mouth can kinda shock you just enough to calm down. the second is just breathing and grounding techniques such as 54321 and box breathing. i won't list out the others, but i hope this can help!

@panicbutnotjustatthedisco

Oh wow disco those are some really interesting ways to cope with panic attacks.

It's really educational too.

What helps me most is breathing in slow and deep, exhaling, just focusing on my breath.

@VickyP hey! i usually try distract myself in some way and focus on my surroundings (eg sometimes counting things/looking for things/etc.) i also try use breathing exercises but it doesnt always work for me

bestb way to deal with panic attacks is to try breathing techniques....inhale and exhale as much as you for 5-10 minutes....and you can try grounding technique such as 54321 technique...try to find or look around things in your surrounding.