Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Hi peeps I aint posted one of these in some time and given that we have new members I thought it would be good to do one again.
Ok Anxiety remember is just a physical reaction to the chemical Adrenalin that is being overly produced by our bodies, it can produce many nasty horrible feelings , BUT that is all it can do produce feelings, its what we do with them feelings that matters .....
So for some of those symptoms try the following
Shaking hands or limbs - clench the hands tight like a fist , hold it and take a deep breath in throught your nose , release the fist as you release the breath out through your nose, by doing this slowly and calmly Not only are we releasing the adrenalin that has built up but we are also taking control of our breathing which will calm our nervous system down.
Lump in throat or tight throat - If you suffer with this then it is usually because when we are tense we walk around with our TOUNGE permanantly place up in the roof of our mouth clenched and tight, and by doing this we IMMEDIATLY tense the throat and jaw area , causing muscle tension , so make a effort to check where your tounge is placed in the mouth and attempt to keep it lowered ,
Pain in shoulders and neck / headaches -- again when tense we walk or sit with our shoulders hunched up around our ears , this causes tension in the neck and head , drop the shoulders , keep a eye on where you hold them and if you feel pain or discomfort when you do this its Ok its Just that your body isnt used to feeling relaxed given time you will re-train yourself to carry yourself properly and in a more relaxed state.
Palpitations - - Horrible I know but is yet another symptom of anxiety , We do tend to monitor it when we feel our heart going ten to the dozen and this is where we make it seem much worse than it actually is - TRY TO REMEMBER A STRONG FAST BEATING HEART IS A GOOD HEART and no harm will come to you or your heart,, if at night time you struggle to sleep for listening to your own heart when lieing down then place to pillows on the bed and rest your head on the crack between the two pillows , this will help you to stop monitering and listening to yourself.
Dizzy or sick spells - again Not nice but very common , when we have anxiety we burn off sugar very fast or we dont eat enough , you should really be trying to eat 4 or 5 small meals a day rather than 2 or 3 large ones and if you feel sick or dizzy then try a sweet cup of tea or a buiscuit to help replenish your sugar levels , every symptom you feel has a logical explanation for it and once you discover how to help yourself beating anxiety becomes much easier.
Depersonalization - this is simply a result of a tired mind , when we have anxiety we seem to think about things 24/7 and of course this tires us out , instead of curling up in bed or on the sofa praying this stops simply do the breathing excersise for 20 minutes , doing this will give your mind time to rest and your body time to relax, doing a good excerise for 20 minutes is the same as allowing the body and mind 2 hours sleep ....... well worth doing and i suggest even if your having a good day try to do this for 20minutes at least 3 times a day this will allow you to keep your body relaxed and in the state it should be.
Intrusive thoughts ----- Horrible again belive me i been there , but remember these are JUST thoughts and again its the way we react to them that matters , dont sit there thinking and pondering about the why's if's and maybe's , get up do something , read a book , play a game crosswords or even bake some bread or cakes anything to take your mind away from your thought, its impossible to think about two things at the same time, I know it seems you can but trust me you CANT and eventually if you stick with distraction it does work .
Exercise - Essential for recovery , try to do some low impact excersises each day it may be a little walk or cycling or even swimming , Yoga is excellant for anxiety and good excerise releases the body's own nautal endorphines which makes us feel good and happy , well worth doing
Sleep - We all sruggle from time to time with our sleeping patterns , try if you can to stop nappin during the day , if you feel you must then be sensible about it , set a alarm and give yourself a hour or perhaps 2 then get up , dont lie there in a half asleep state thinking about things get up and do something constructive , if you wake during the night and struggle to get bak off to sleep again dont lie there get up , go clean or get a nice warm drink you have to start breaking the cycle and habbits that we so easily form when we suffer with anxiety or panic
Panic Attack - Ok firstly try to break the cycle of being scared something terrible is going to happen IT WONT , Runnin away simple creates more problems and makes us feel a failure , if you feel panic coming where ever you are try this
Drop your shoulders , focus on something near by - a shop window , a lamp post or even a tin of beans if your in the supermarket , take a slow deep breath in through your nose count to 4 , release it our again through the nose and repeat , tell yourself its Ok it will pass and you WILL be ok , do this for a few moments then continue with what you were doing , you may feel slightly dizzy or sick , this is Ok its as a result of your levels returning to normal , take a sweet and suck it this will help with the nausau , anyone who Knows me Knows i have a constant supply of mints in my handbag for such occasions .
Ok if anyone has other symptoms of needs advice on anything in paticular leave a post and i will reply
Michelle
This post is by a former member of NMP. Michelle can no longer be contacted through this site but please feel free to continue posting on the forum for further advice and support.
Regards
Lisa
NMP Administrator
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Hi
Just read your post. Fantastic! I should really print it off and read it when I feel bad!
Would you know how to stop constant dizziness from the moment I get up to when I go to bed?
Thanks - Lizzie xx
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Hiya there
reasons for dizzyness could be either you are shallow breathing ie - breathing from the chest and not from your stomach which will be reducing the oxygen levels in your blood ( and no it isnt dangrous ) just uncomfortalbe , try the breathing excersises that i said , you can do this several times a day till you get the hang of it , secondly are you eating properly , this could be another reason for feeling dizzy
and I am sorry to ask but are you truly feeling dizzy all the time or is it that your so focused on it that it feels as tho its all day ??
good luck
Michelle xxx
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
I think youve hit the nail on the head. I start to feel dizzy and then I concentrate on it and think about it all the time! Then I start to tune into my breathing and breathe funny!
Im changing meds at the mo and feeling really anxious and have been having daily panic attacks which isnt helping either!
How are you? What sort of symptoms do you get?
I had my second baby 7 weeks ago and she has a bit of a cold and this is driving my anxiety mad too!
Thanks for your help - Liz xx
PS How do you know so much about this all??
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Hi Lizzie
I did suffer with Severe General Anxiety Disorder and intrusive thoughts , I am Now recovered and am a trained Helpliner with No Panic, I had all of the above symptoms and more besides , when i was recovering I found a lot of different things that helped me and some that didnt, Now I am recovered I take great Joy and comfort in helping others .
I am a Mum to 4 married 23 years and thats about it really
Good luck xxx
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Hey Lizzie,
That's a big bummer about the constant dizzies. I think you're on the right track with concentrating on your breathing. That was one of the first steps that helped me focus away my other symptoms. Once you find your breathing pace, you get so comfortable in it that you won't switch to breathing anxiety from dizzy spell anxiety. The concentrated breathing with be like a touchstone to pull you into a more centered place.
-Rachel
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Michelle
Great post - thanks :yesyes:
It summaries a lot of the usual and common things/symptoms we get.
I will make it sticky so people can keep referring back to it.
As for
"Lump in throat or tight throat - If you suffer with this then it is usually because when we are tense we walk around with our TOUNGE permanantly place up in the roof of our mouth clenched and tight, and by doing this we IMMEDIATLY tense the throat and jaw area , causing muscle tension , so make a effort to check where your tounge is placed in the mouth and attempt to keep it lowered"
I never knew that and have the swallowing problem really bad today and just noticed that my tongue is always on the roof of my mouth. I will make a concious effort to lower it and see how that goes.
Cheers:hugs:
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Your welcome Nic and all if anyone needs anything else JUST SHOUT , take care all xxxxxxxxxx
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Fantastic post Michelle! i'm so glad i tought you everything i know!!! LMAO......:winks:
loads a love
Me
xxxxxx
Re: Tips for dealing with Anxiety and Panic
Well in return for your words of wisdom lisa i SHALL teach you How to spell ------ TAUGHT lmao rofl hehehehe