By Alena Gerst, LCSW | Founder, Director, Psychotherapist
An anxiety attack can be a scary experience to go through. Most of us can remember in minute detail what happened the first time we had one.
Sometimes you may feel anxious about something, not because you’re worried that something will go wrong, but you feel anxiety because you’re afraid you’ll have an anxiety attack. The symptoms can impact your mental and physical well-being all at once, causing symptoms like sweating, dizziness, a racing heart, trembling, intense fear, a feeling like you might vomit or faint, or a sense of doom.
While most anxiety attacks only last a few minutes, some can linger for up to 30 minutes, and even just a few minutes of that intense fear can make you feel like you’re losing control. Being able to calm yourself quickly is the best defense when you’re under attack from the inside out.
With that in mind, let’s cover some effective ways to calm yourself during an anxiety attack so you can take control and eventually get to the bottom of what’s causing your anxiety.
1. Don’t Forget to Breathe
When your body goes into panic mode, you’ll naturally want to take shorter, shallow breaths. That’s ok! Just remind yourself of what’s happening. You are hyperventilating because you are experiencing anxiety. Once you have a sense of what’s happening to you, then you can begin to focus on slowing down your breathing.
Inhale through your nose and slowly out through your mouth. We do this for a number of reasons, one of them being that you will inhale more slowly through your nose. Have you ever tried hyperventilating through your nose? You’ll see what we mean.
If you can take all the time you need to bring your breath down to slower deep breathing, you’ll calm your body and many of the symptoms caused by an anxiety attack. Focusing on your breath also serves as a healthy distraction, giving you something to put your energy into that distracts you from the fear.
2. Be Mindful
Mindfulness is so much more than a buzzword. It’s the practice of staying grounded in the present, and can be a huge help when you’re going through an anxiety attack.
Mindfulness has a lot to do with focusing on your breathing as well. Close your eyes, take slow breaths, and think about where you are right now. What do you feel? What do you smell? By becoming more in-tune with your surroundings, you’ll feel more stable and in control.
3. Listen to Music
Research has shown countless benefits when it comes to music and mental health. During an anxiety attack, listening to music can distract you, but certain types of music can also help you calm down.
Soft classical music or calming nature sounds can be soothing and bring you to the present while giving you something to focus on other than fear. Reggae music, and music that consists of a solo instrument, like a flute, piano, or guitar, has also been show to calm the nervous system.
4. Resist!
Most panic attacks start when negative thoughts become too overwhelming to handle. Anxiety fuels itself on the “what ifs” of life. So, instead of letting that kind of fear take over, fight back.
Challenge negative thoughts that are threatening to keep you in a state of fear. If your anxiety is telling you that you’re not good enough, think of some of your strongest skills. If you’re worried about the outcome of something, think of the best possible scenario. Sometimes this exercise can feel disingenuous. But it’s necessary to foster these skills so they can become second nature to you in your times of need.
By challenging negative thoughts, you take away their power. When you feel a bit more in control, you’re less likely to get overwhelmed by fear.
5. Get Moving
Most people know that exercise is good for your physical health. But it’s also great when you’re dealing with mental health issues. During an anxiety attack, taking a walk or doing any kind of physical activity can distract you, clear your mind, and boost your mood to make it easier to challenge negative thoughts, and get a better handle on your breathing.
Bringing your body and mind back to a calmer state will once again give you more control, so don’t hesitate to get on the floor (if you can) and try some light stretching or even jogging in place.
If you find that you’re frequently dealing with anxiety attacks, the best thing you can do for yourself is to work with a professional to determine the root cause of the anxiety, and figure out how you want to address it.
Therapy can help you get to the bottom of what’s causing your anxiety, so you can learn how to overcome it for good. Being able to calm yourself during an anxiety attack is important, but fighting back against the core of your anxious thoughts will provide more long-term relief. Start this year off by taking control of your anxiety for good, and set up a consultation soon.
