How to Handle Panic and Anxiety Attacks?

All of us have those moments when we want to start throwing things.

Screaming, kicking the walls, overturning tables. But why get hysterical?

It’s perfectly normal to have such feelings of helpless rage from time to time, and respond with panic and anxiety attacks.

If you feel that such outbursts are taking control of your life, it may be time to step back and reevaluate your situation, and your response to stress.

Panic and anxiety outbursts can distort the decision-making process, or preclude it altogether. When your thoughts are swirling, it’s hard to see clearly. You’ll tend to make hasty decisions, to act just for the sake of doing something, instead of taking a much-needed pause to reflect, take a deep breath, and determine your wisest course of action.

There are a few guideposts you can use to help orient yourself when it seems that panic and anxiety have taken control of your mind. These are very practical steps you can take to manage stress constructively:

1. Take a deep breath. If an attack is threatening to break out, nip it in the bud. Sit down, stretch, relax a bit, and most importantly, breathe deeply and slowly. One of the best ways to manage rage and anger is simply to restore a slower rate of breathing. Inhale and exhale slowly, and help lower your heart rate back to a normal level.

2. Purge your bring. Those swirling thoughts in your head can obscure the truth. So maybe it’s a good idea to simply stop thinking for a moment. Purge your mind of those racing thoughts and fears, and reflect quietly for a moment about what you can do yourself to take an active and positive role in the situation.

3. Apply the brakes. Stop racing around. Quell the urge to do something—do anything—just to make yourself feel as if you’re being active. Chances are, if you act on impulse, you’ll just be wasting your energy, and continuing the spiral of frustration. Decelerate, and you’ll enjoy a smoother ride.

4. Stifle the voice of panic. That inner voice that always whispers wild ideas and outlandish fears can cause you to panic. That voice distorts reality, exaggerates, makes mountains out of molehills. View things from a broader perspective. Sure, there are challenges ahead. But they couldn’t possibly be as devastating as that voice suggests.

5. Seek counsel from those you trust. One of the best ways to find a broader, more level-headed perspective on your challenges is to ask for the point of view of a trusted friend or advisor. They’ll often have an eye for certain aspects or possibilities of your situation that you’ve been blinded to, because of your fears and anxiety.

6. Treat yourself. You spiraled a bit out of control, and flew off the handle. Take a time-out to restore your sanity and your serenity. Return to yourself. Find a place of quiet, and retreat there for a while. Remind yourself of who you are and where you’re going.

Nothing constructive is ever brought about by panic and anxiety attacks. But positive steps can be taken to manage these unbridled fears and eruptions of rage, and preserve a place of calm in any storm. Soon you’ll become the lighthouse, instead of the storm-tossed ship.

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Photo by Phoney Nickle, flickr.com