To ask what are the symptoms of a mild panic attack

[way2serious]

I am suffering from anxiety at the moment and think I may be having mild panic attacks - feeling very panicky, breathing quickly, becoming very hot, fast heart beat, etc. Does anyone have any tips to alleviate the symptoms? They don’t last terribly long but keep coming over me. We are going away tomorrow and I think that may be the trigger as all I want to do is curl up under a blanket.

I get this occasionally. I’ll sometimes faint too.
excitement nerves stress or self consciousness can set me off

@kissmyfatass Any suggestions on how to manage it when it happens

Look up box breathing techniques.
Basically - inhaling for a count of four, holding the breath for a count of four, exhaling for a count of four, and holding the breath again for a count of four.

@XenoBitch thank you. I will look this up. It’s a really new thing for me.

This will sound strange but it works. It’s a trick actors with stage fright use.

Next time you feel like this, force out a sigh of relief. Your body is pumping out adrenaline to a perceived threat. The sigh resets this, tricks your brain that the threat is over and stops the adrenaline rush.

Hope this works for you.

Along with box breathing there are other grounding techniques - I do the 5 things I can see, 4 I can hear, 3 I can smell, 2 I can touch, 1 I can taste one.

It's very important to try and practice whichever technique you choose when you're calm so you can access it when you're stressed.

Spending time in nature might help, too, if it's not just another job to add to the list.