Does this thought limit anyone else?

[Ditapage]

I know most of us are battling panic over many years and are very familiar with the symptoms but there's no getting used to them. I find that I can accept my panicky sensations to a degree, try to see them as nagging and uncomfortable rather than of great medical significance but it's the same unhelpful thought: THIS time it's not just anxiety. I fully expect to collapse or some other horrible thing because of some undiagnosed illness.


It's like: brain goes it's just panic. And I can sort of calm down. Then a louder voice says this time it's serious. Oh no!


If you have this unhelpful distressing thought, how do you challenge it?

[Kyle032196]

I get friends opinions. I be around people, take the step to entertain yourself.. You'll find feeling good helps you realize you don't feel bad lol.

[ana]

I worry about my health a lot,and for the longest time I was convinced I had brain cancer or something similarly horrible. However,the thing is,if it was something severe I was suffering from,then why would I only have the scary symptoms whilst anxious and not whilst calm/happy? Also,after 16 years of this,I reckon I'd have died by now. ��

[wavey]

I think taming that thought process you mentioned is one of the most difficult things. It's what I guess most people would call their conscience, when they are talking to themselves and warning themselves about things in their mind.

The 'what-ifs' I've heard them called, always when panic sets in - 'what if' it doesn't get better, 'what if' this really is it etc. Trying to stay in the moment (as they say in meditation), and not think about the future can help - during PA, things that need to be done in the future can seem overwhelming, although when they actuall happen, they are no problem at all. So it is a waste of time worrying about what might happen - I heard a statistic that something like 90% of what we worry about never happens. Of course, the PA voice says - what if this time it does ;)

Claire Weekes said that we must try not to add fuel to the fire by listening to scarey thoughts or questions etc. But it isn't easy in the moment. I believe that PA and the thoughts go hand in hand, as it were. If anxiety starts creeping up, the thoughts turn scarier and the panic increases.

Panic seems to make me hyper aware of myself, which creates the thoughts. I've noticed, as Kyle points out, that if you go out, talk to people, do things etc., the scary thoughts side of things often moves into the background and even disappears.

I've also realised that this could be because I'm not aware of myself when doing things, I'm concentrating on the what's happening around me. Exercise can also help, with the release of endorphins which puts the mind in a more positive frame.

[Chris 614]

Yes, the what-iffing pops into my head a lot. I've dealt with panic and anxiety for the past 35 years. As I got older, if I had some new sensation during a panic attack I would think...well, it could be my heart for real this time because I'm older! I went to the doctor a few times after it happened...ekg, nuclear stress test, echocardiogram. My heart was fine. At this point I have felt so many weird things during panic attacks and anxiety and remind myself of this when it happens again. A few weeks ago I was having some bad days...some minor health issues...but I got on the crazy train. I finally said to myself...how likely is it that these minor issues are really the catastrophic things I'm imagining they are??? Not very. The health issues passed and I lived to tell about it...again.

[montys]

Yeah, the "this time" mind trap is what usually sets off panic for me, and renders useless whatever mindfulness exercise I'm practicing in the moment.

Lately though, I've been trying to build up a defense against the "this time" trap by reminding myself that the last time I encountered "this time," nothing happened and I made it out safely.

If all else fails, I whip my phone out and start watching YouTube videos. Hahah. Sometimes, pure distraction is the only surefire bet.

[Chris 614]

Yes, sometimes all of the tools I've learned go right out the window when I am in the throes of panic! Getting involved in something that takes my mind off of me really helps a lot!