A HYPOCHANDRIACS TALE

One way of tackling panic attacks is to look at the way you talk to yourself, especially during times of stress and pressure. Panic attacks often begin or escalate when you tell yourself scary things, like "I feel light-headed . . . I'm about to faint!" or "I'm trapped in this traffic jam and something terrible is gonna happen!" or "If I go outside, I'll freak out." These are called "negative predictions" and they have a strong influence on the way your body feels. If you're mentally predicting a disaster, your body's alarm response goes off and the "fight-flight response" kicks in.

To combat this, try to focus on calming, positive thoughts, like "I'm learning to deal with panicky feelings and I know that people overcome panic all the time" or "This will pass quickly, and I can help myself by concentrating on my breathing and imagining a relaxing place" or "These feelings are uncomfortable, but they won't last forever."

Sometimes it's helpful to remind yourself of these FACTS about panic attacks:

A panic attack cannot cause heart failure or a heart attack.
A panic attack cannot cause you to stop breathing.
A panic attack cannot cause you to faint.
A panic attack cannot cause you to "go crazy."
A panic attack cannot cause you to lose control of yourself.
If it's too hard for you to think calming thoughts or to concentrate on relaxation strategies when you're having a panic attack, find ways to distract yourself from the negative thoughts and feelings. Some people do this by talking to other people when they feel the panic coming on. Others prefer to exercise or work on a detailed project or hobby. Changing scenery can sometimes be helpful, too, but it's important not to get into a pattern of avoiding necessary daily tasks. If you notice that you're regularly avoiding things like driving, going shopping, going to work, or taking public transport, it's probably time to get some professional help.

Put a stop to the thoughts that lead to anxiety, and to replace those thoughts with realistic, rational thoughts. Then, when these self-statements are practiced and learned, your brain takes over automatically. This is a form of conditioning, meaning that your brain chemistry (neurotransmission) actually changes as a result of your new thinking habits.

First, use thought stoppage. Be gentle but firm about it.

"STOP! These thoughts are not good for me. They are not healthy or helpful thoughts, and I have decided to move in a better direction and learn to think differently." (You are reminding and reinforcing your brain each and every time you make this rational and realistic statement.)

Then, pick two or three statements from the list below that seem to help you, and repeat them to yourself OUT LOUD each day. (You don’t have to believe them fully yet – that will happen later).

What if...? Two tiny little words. And a whole world of
emotional discomfort. These two words are what drive *all*
forms of anxiety.

If you suffer from general anxiety you may find yourself
saying things like: "What if I get cancer?", "What if my
partner is falling out of love with me?", "What if I say
something and look like an idiot?", "What if I can't meet
that deadline at work?","What if I mess up that
presentation?", "What if...?"

All these "what ifs...?" keep anxiety stoked. When you are
worrying or anxious there is a stream of these "what if...?"
thoughts. So, what to do?

Well there are a number of methods you can use. But I'll
teach you a very simple one you can begin using today,
quickly and easily. It's a two step process...

1. Become Aware. Usually these "what if...?" thoughts happen
so automatically and naturally they barely register in
your conscious mind, you get caught up in a sort of
day-dream, or should that be day-mare! So the first step
is to become *aware* of when you are caught up in the
"what if...?" process. Just notice, and be aware.

2. So what...? When you become aware that you're in an
anxious or worrisome moment *reframe* you thoughts.
Instead of saying "what if...?" say to yourself "so what
if...?" This is a subtle but very significant change in
your relationship with worry. Saying "what if...?" is like
trying to confront an undefeatable enemy face-on and
battling away, but the more you do so the more drained you
become. Here, you can't win. But saying "so what if...?"
is like mentally shrugging your shoulders and just walking
away from that enemy. When you do this you save yourself a
whole lot of mental and physical energy.

While this method won't cure anxiety, for many people it
certainly takes the edge off. Give it a try, you might be
pleasantly surprised.

 Your panic plan
If stress usually precedes a panic attack, then the obvious prescription, you'd think, would be to double up on yoga classes or try some head-calming meditation. Unfortunately, more 'om' isn't the answer. There's no scientific proof that stress-reducing techniques will stifle future panic attacks. Because there's often no predicting when or whether another attack will strike, doctors usually don't recommend therapy or taking meds regularly unless your attacks are frequent and debilitating. But if a panic attack does occur, how you respond can steer you clear of uncontrollable hysterics. Here's how to wage your own war on terror:

Before it happens know that a panic attack will not harm you
'In therapy, we teach patients that although panic attacks are uncomfortable, there's nothing physically dangerous about them,' says Kimberly Wilson, Ph.D., a cognitive-behavioral therapist in the San Francisco Bay area and a psychiatry instructor at Stanford University.

Open up about your attacks
If you know you're susceptible to panic attacks, let friends, family, or even a trusted co-worker know the symptoms, so they can recognize one when it's happening and reassure you that you'll get through it,"

Separation Anxiety is driving me crazy. I thought only cats & dogs get this and little kids too. But I guess I was wrong because I'm suffering from it and drives me up a wall.  Ok this is how it goes I do suffer from anxiety attacks but sometimes i can control them but sometimes I cant and they get so bad that I feel like I'm just going die. when I start to feel that I cant control it I always call my wife and just talk to her I don't know what it is about being on the phone with her but it really helps. For some unknown reason a few minutes into the conversation I forget I'm having a Panic Attack. So now I tell her you better answer that phone I don't care what you are doing you better answer it. Once we had been in a fight and she knows when I'm going through one. So she decided to not answer the phone when I was having an episode that was the worst day of my life i must have called her phone about 500 times I actually thought this is it for me. I was sweating, shaking couldn't think straight i was about to loose it. So i said hell with it I'm going to the hospital. Once i get to the hospital the triage nurse takes my vitals she says everything is fine but my blood pressure is up a little. I said i feel like my heart is going to explode she tells me to go to the waiting room and wait at that moment my cell rings it's my wife she says where are you the hospital. As soon as I heard her voice it was like I was another person that fast it all went away. She knows me to well. I'm trying to really control this with out any meds I just want to be normal.