What should I do if I end up crying, and I find myself struggling to breathe?

You can do many things. If you have a good friend you can count on, you can give them a call and talking to them might help or distract you. You can also put a movie for distraction. Meditation can also help with breathing exercises. You can also do small things like just taking a glass of water in your hand or filling it with water and emptying it just to stay focused on something. Anything that gives you distraction or help you stay focused on something else

If this occurs, try taking deep breaths and focus on your surroundings instead of thinking about whatever made you feel this way. Try a simple exercise that will make you refocus - counting, describing your surroundings e.g. what are the objects made of, what colour are they, touch them and focus on the feeling under your fingertips. Another exercise for breathing is the classic paper bag breathing.

Rest a hand on your chest and the other on your tummy. Breath slowly with your diaphragm instead of your chest. You should feel your hand rise and lower on your tummy. Repeat until you feel calm and can breath calmly.

I have felt like this before. I have learned to do some breathing exercises that help calm me down. When I notice these feelings I take a deep breath and hold it for a count of four then breath out through my mouth for a count of four and repeat until I feel more in control. If breathing doesn't work I try to distract myself with taking to someone else. It's ok to feel overwhelmed it is a sign that we are not taking time out to care for ourselves. I treat these feelings as a warning sign telling me to find time to relax.

Start counting by two's, starting from 100 and ending at zero. This might seem silly at first but it really helps your brain focus on a different task and naturally calms you down.

Look at something on the wall and concentrate on it, and take time attempting to take deep breathes. Sometimes, this seems very difficult but over time it'll work!

Keep on crying, get it all out! Instead of suppressing the intense emotion, it needs to be released

Breathing exercises are usually safe and helpful. The method I use is inhaling for 4 seconds, holding my breathe for 7 seconds, and exhaling for 8 seconds.

Try zooming out of the situation and grounding yourself in the objective reality surrounding you. Close your eyes and focus on the sensations running through your body. Allow yourself to watch how your body is trying to heal - take note of your heart beating quicker and harder, feel the warmth of the tears on your cheek, pay attention to the feelings of heaviness inside of you. Allow yourself to get through the episode and try to pay attention what is happening to you physically as the emotions pass through - because they will.

Try googling breathing exercise gif. There are a few out there. Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. If you don't have access to the internet at the time, just exhale counting slowly to four and inhale doing the same.