Soothing Remedies for panic attacks

It was my experience of anxiety and depression that led me to this work. I was having regular panic attacks that were destroying my confidence and making me withdraw both at work and socially.

It is amazing how much of a difference learning to connect to your body can make to your anxiety symptoms. It was a transformational change for me. I love supporting other people to feel calm, to start to notice what techniques and points calm them down when they need it the most. Building their awareness so they can access calm whenever they feel anxious.

Some of the simple, tested methods for relaxing include;

Touch

A hug from someone you know and trust (including yourself) will bring your body back to a relaxed state. That feeling of being at home, being safe will flood your system. Studies suggest that to get the most benefit the hug needs to last at least 20 seconds.

If you are lucky enough to have someone you would like to kiss, kissing is much more effective than hugging! A seven second kiss will also take your body to a relaxed state, calming the system and giving you chance to reset.

Breath

When you exhale for longer than you inhale your body will relax. There are lots of different ways to do this, try a few and see what works best for you.

You can use counting, in for 3, hold for 4, out for 5.

You could experiment with a technique called rectangle breathing, for this find a rectangle anywhere in the room (doors work well) and track the shape with your eyes. Then match your inhale to the short side and the exhale to the long side, moving your breath with your eyes.

Or you could close your eyes and imagine a ribbon curling up and unfolding. Each time you breathe in, the ribbon curls up and each time you breathe out the ribbon unfolds.

Sensation

Focusing on a physical sensation can be a powerful way to come back to the moment and slowdown a panic response. Pressing your tongue to the roof of the mouth is a good way to do this. Another great way to do this would be a fingertip press, I love this method as you are also stimulating your brain reflex at the same time!

There are loads of reflex and acupressure points that can work really well to support you when you are feeling anxious or experiencing panic attacks. If you would like to find out more, please drop me an email. I’d love to help.

Contact me at hannah@hannahtappenden.com