If you know What to do before an anxiety attack You can overcome it, feel better and start to enjoy life again .
The symptoms of an anxiety attack cause great discomfort to the person who is suffering, since they experience palpitations, intense fear of Dying, sweating, difficulty breathing, etc.
However, in the vast majority of cases, the episode does not carry any real danger to the person who suffers.
Here are 10 tips that you can put into practice if you experience an anxiety crisis.
What to do in an anxiety attack?
1. Make sure it's just an anxiety attack
The first time you experience a anxiety crisis , You should go to a doctor to confirm that there are no organic causes that explain the Episode - if the crisis appears next to other indicators, such as vomiting or bluish skin tone, may indicate a more serious disorder.
In addition, if it is a very serious crisis, they can provide you with the right medication for the episode to refer more quickly.
However, ideally, you should start the following tips, so that you do not depend solely on the medication, but you can increase the Control over your own body and gradually reduce your symptoms.
2. Do not run away from the situation
This is the most common mistake people make with anxiety attacks.
If you leave the place where these episodes occur - for example, at a party with unknown people - you will consider these places as dangerous, for Those who will increasingly avoid coming to them.
He anxiety disorder Fundamentally through direct exposure to the feared stimuli or situations, so Where the anxiety attacks appear - or return to them after the crisis - will help you reduce your frequency and intensity.
So what you have to do is Combat anxiety attacks , Which usually do not last more than 10-20 minutes - being more intense the episode in The first few minutes - retreating to a little crowded place and hoping that your breathing, heart rate and general condition will normalize.
Once you have sent the episode, return to the place where the crisis occurred - as we have already said, if you avoid exposing yourself to the situation, you You will become more and more afraid.
3. Lose the fear of anxiety
If you have already experienced an anxiety attack, you will know that the fear that is suffering at that moment is of a very high intensity, especially because The symptoms - which are very alarming - appear suddenly and unexpectedly.
However, after you have experienced an anxiety attack or more than one, you are surely aware that these situations do not occur What are you afraid of?
Therefore, when you experience one of these attacks again, you must be aware that it is only anxiety, that it is not dangerous and that you can not Letting yourself be carried away by the fear of seeing the disproportionate reaction that your body shows.
By controlling your fear of anxiety, you will be able to control the reaction that your body shows.
4. Change your irrational thoughts by self-instruction of courage
The thoughts That occur when you experience an anxiety attack negatively affect the maintenance of your fears - and can increase Potential for new episodes of anxiety attacks.
To fight the thoughts and to have that you have more control in these situations, we propose that you carry out these two modifications Fundamental:
Change your irrational thoughts . Even if it is difficult for you, you should strive not to let yourself be carried away by the catastrophic thoughts that invade you. Instead, think That you are in another place, like in the beach or in the mountain, trying to imagine as many details as possible - like the noise of the waves of the
Sea, the breeze on the face, etc.-.
Use self-instruction of courage. Another good technique that you can use is to repeat yourself that you can combat this state of anxiety, with phrases such as"I have overcome it Other times"or"it's just about anxiety, there's no real danger." On the first occasions that you use the self-instructions, you can Choose to verbalize them aloud - whenever possible - and, if you do it in front of a mirror, its effect may be greater. You can too Choose to write them on paper and always carry it with you, to use it if necessary.
5. Concentrate on your breathing
At all times, during the anxiety attack, it is very important that you focus on the rhythm of your breathing.
As you can see, it is a very agitated breathing that damages other systems in your body, such as cardiovascular .
By performing a diaphragmatic breath, you will get the symptoms of the anxiety attack fading.
This type of breathing is carried out by sending air to the abdominal area (instead of to the lungs), and the steps to carry it out are:
Take deep breaths, lasting at least 5 seconds.
Try to hold the inspired air, without ejecting it, about 3 seconds.
The air expands very slowly.
To ensure that you perform your diaphragmatic breathing properly, place your hand on your abdomen and see that it rises as you inhale.
Repeat this sequence for a few minutes or as long as the symptoms of anxiety decrease.
If this breathing technique does not work for you, or your breathing is too hectic, you can use a plastic bag.
Approach the plastic bag - holding it in half - and make it cover your mouth and nose, and breathe the air it contains.
This is an effective way of combating Hyperventilation Which usually occurs in anxiety attacks, since you will be breathing CO2.
It is important that you avoid completely covering your face with the bag, and do not use this mechanism for long - seconds will be Sufficient to achieve the desired effect.
6. Uses progressive muscle relaxation
This technique Consists basically of tensing and relaxing different muscle groups.
In the face of an anxiety attack, the muscular tension that is experienced is usually very high, so you can get many benefits using this technique.
Although in a time of so much fear and discomfort, you may find it difficult to put this technique into practice, you should strive to carry it out.
First, try to identify those muscles that are more tense - they can be hands, arms, face, etc. -.
Once you have identified them, try to tighten them even further for about 5 seconds. Then relax and concentrate on the well-being that Causes them to strain those muscles.
Repeat the procedure as many times as necessary until you notice that your muscle tension has decreased.
Putting this technique into practice, you can check how your fear also decreases, since when concentrating on some distracting activity, you lend Less attention to your fears.
7. Avoid having many people help you
If you have already had an anxiety attack, you will have verified that the people around you are worried and try to help you by giving you some Advice and telling you what to do.
When you are only helped by one or a few people, you can become productive, as they help you to maintain control and to make some guidelines Basic.
However, if you do not want to develop a Dependence on others - realizing that you would not be able to overcome the crisis of anxiety for yourself - Tries to control the situation with mechanisms that are more suited to the characteristics of your anxiety crisis, so that you are the person to whom Attribute success.
What you can do is inform your relatives and friends in advance so that they know that it is a situation that does not entail any real danger, and That they do not have to be alarmed if they come to witness this episode.
8. Do not perform rituals during anxiety attacks
This is a fundamental aspect that you should avoid at all costs when you are experiencing an anxiety attack.
Rituals and superstitions can be quickly implemented in your repertoire of Beliefs And behaviors, so that you will perform certain acts Superstitious-real or imagined-to combat anxiety attacks.
It is curious that, although the anxiety crisis ends after several minutes, regardless of what you are doing, you can associate the Completion of the episode with a specific ritual, such as praying, touching a particular object, etc.
If you acquire these erroneous beliefs, you will experience added difficulties when you can not carry out this ritual - for example, you will feel greater Anxiety when you can not touch the object that makes you feel"safe"-.
In addition, just as when a person helps you, you will not be able to attribute the success of having successfully overcome the crisis, Considering that anxiety attacks are dangerous and you can not fight them for yourself.
9. Give yourself the credit of having overcome the anxiety crisis
Once the episode has ended, you should become aware of everything you have done to combat anxiety, attributing you the merit of having it overcome.
You should also note that nothing has happened that you feared, which will make you see that it is something harmless - and that you are safe despite the Reaction of your organism.
Little by little, you can go against anxiety attacks with a Greater self-confidence Y self confidence .
You can also check that, if you do these exercises, the duration and intensity of the episodes will be progressively reduced.
10. Go to a mental health specialist if the anxiety disorder is maintained or aggravated
Although anxiety attacks do not usually carry any real danger, it is necessary that you go to a specialist if the episodes are frequent, so that Can tell you some specific guidelines or methods of action that help you fight anxiety.
If you are told that you need to take specific medication, try to combine it with a psychological therapy so that you do not just mask the symptoms of Anxiety but you can solve your internal problems and achieve Increase your quality of life .
These are the methods that we propose for you to know to act before an anxiety attack.
What is anxiety?
In general, we can define anxiety as the combination of different mental and physical manifestations that can not be attributed to real dangers, But imaginary, and occur in the form of crisis or as a persistent and diffuse state.
Anxiety stands out for its similarity to fear, since both mechanisms provoke similar manifestations - thoughts of danger, apprehension, Similar physiological and motor responses. In addition, both are adaptive mechanisms, which help our survival by moving away from Dangerous stimuli.
The main difference is that the fear Occurs in the presence of present stimuli, whereas anxiety is related to the anticipation of Future stimuli, which are indefinable and unpredictable.
In addition, when anxiety exceeds normality in terms of intensity, duration or frequency, it can lead to manifestations Pathological in the person, both functional and emotional.
Some examples of situations that can lead to high anxiety - sometimes emerging in anxiety attacks - are job, public speaking , Go to parties where there are many unknown people, etc.
And you, what other methods would you use to combat it?
References
- Becerra-García, A.M., Madalena, A.C., Estanislau, C., Rodríguez-Rico, J.L., Dias, H., Bassi, A., & Morato, S. (2007). Anxiety and fear: their adaptive value and maladaptations. Latin American Journal of Psychology , 39 (1), 75.
- Pacheco, N. E., & Berrocal, P. F. (2005). Anxiety and Stress.
- Rojas, E. (2000). The anxiety . Pocket-size.
- Sánchez, J.P.E., van der Hofstadt Román, C.J., & Galván, B. (2007). Live exposure and cognitive-behavioral techniques in a case of panic attacks with agoraphobia. International journal of clinical and health psychology , 7 (1), 217-232.
- Sierra, J.C., Ortega, V., & Zubeidat, I. (2003). Anxiety, anxiety and stress: three concepts to differentiate. Mal Serve Magazine and Subjectivity , 3 (1), 10-59.
- Image source.