anxiety and panic?

so, i have really bad anxiety, and well, lately i've been experiencing a lot of panic... i wake up feeling panicked every morning, and every little anxiety sets me off, i've had anxiety my whole life but its never been, well, like this. i'm not really sure how to deal with panic, cause it hasn't been too much of an issue until around last year, and i was wondering, if you guys could share your experiences with panic/ anxiety, or advice as to how you deal with it?

hmm i dont know if ive had much experiences with panic but i experience anxiety like all the time. im more socially anxious than generalized anxious though, so my anxiety is normally focused on other people. (thoughts constantly running like oh this person hates me, im being annoying, what if, blah blah) im also a very emotional person, & the littlest things can set me off, normally in sadness or anger. so my anxiety usually comes out as uncontrollable crying to the point of hypverventilating, or shaking, rather than panic attacks/feeling like im dying. also i get paranoid & delusional thinking, more often when it regards people who are super close to me.

i dont know how to deal with it much, other than once i realize what is going on & im breaking down, make myself take a few deep breaths, & tell myself im or my thoughts are irrational/unrealistic. it's hard to do, but its a lot easier if someone is close by you and tells you to take deep breaths and re-assures you things are okay, such as significant other. but if not, maybe a pet or furry animal, or stuffed animal you can hold and stroke as doing that lowers heart rate. in public, a little stim toy is also nice, they're not just for people on the autistic spectrum or with attention disorders! they can also ease anxiety, just having a little something to carry around like a furry keychain or a fidget keychain, or a bracelet or necklace to play with. in class I would have a kneaded eraser, which also doubles as stationary ! lol. also judging by your pfp, you seem like youd be interested in something cute, i just found out about these the other day! num noms are perfect for the classroom, super adorable little erasers you can stack on top of each other, and theyre scented! smelling something nice, like having an essential oil disperser, incense, or flowers in your room could also help with the problems youve been having upon waking up. :,)

thank you for sharing, i have a similar experience when it comes to socializing, i tend to get overly apologetic and then react very similarly to how you do, so i understand that, thanks for the tips

My anxiety comes and goes in huge bouts, I happen to be in a pretty deep area of it right now. I was doing fine for the longest time, but it just popped back up. I initially react to anxiety with a depressed feeling and shutting everyone out, then that leads to the thought of "nobody understands me!", then it snowballs from there. I had a nasty panic attack a few nights ago after a debate with my boyfriend and the only thing that stopped my hyperventilating, surprisingly, was running around my ACNL town. It was so calming, especially since I've had that town since my mom and dog were still alive, it brought back warm fuzzies. Besides playing the game, I always have to hug/cuddle with something, like a pillow or plushie when I'm feeling anxious. Anything that makes me feel younger or more childlike always brings me back. And drinking something nice and cold. Something dumb even, I got a fidget spinner as a joke, but just grasping the shape of it really tightly seems to calm me down too.
I hope you find helpful ways to cope

I have had terrible anxiety as well. For me it helps not to think about it. My parents told me its all mentally. Walking around helps me too. Hope you feel better soon

I usually get panic attacks before school or work. Sometimes it happens because I'm in a social situation. I also experience very acute social anxiety, which I s2g sucks so bad.
The best thing to do is to workout. It helps me forget all my troubles and I feel invigorated afterwards.

thanks guys for all your advice <3 i'm gonna try it all, and hope you guys will be able to feel better soon

I have some annoying anxiety case, like hearing the phone ringing is too much stress for me, I don't pick up mail, look at emails or watch TV for the same reasons, paperwork make me vomit (because I panic too much) and because of that I get into troubles that cause even more stress. I find life in general really stressful. I do sports and go to the forest to calm me down but it doesn't solve the problem, the only thing that works is exposition therapy, but if I stop for a while the anxiety creeps back. It's not something easy to do either.

yeah, anxiety most definitely isn't easy to deal with, or to try to overcome, but its very much possible

i've been dealing with anxiety my whole life, since i started elementary school. in middle school, my anxiety was at it's peak, and i didn't know how to cope with it. now i'm going into being a senior in high school and i've learned on how to deal with it and accept it. it's all about finding ways to get through attacks without hurting yourself. for instance, things i've done is: take a bath, watch a good show, drink something hot or soothing, or talk to people that you know can help you calm down. it's also good to try breathing exercises or even consider seeing a therapist or counseling because they know more and can help. medication doesn't hurt either, nor does talking to people about it. it took time for me to grow into someone who isn't as anxiety-driven all the time. i'm sure it's something to eventually grow out of and get better

im glad you're doing better, i aspire to not have all of my actions be driven by anxiety someday.

gravitycrossing said:

so, i have really bad anxiety, and well, lately i've been experiencing a lot of panic... i wake up feeling panicked every morning, and every little anxiety sets me off, i've had anxiety my whole life but its never been, well, like this. i'm not really sure how to deal with panic, cause it hasn't been too much of an issue until around last year, and i was wondering, if you guys could share your experiences with panic/ anxiety, or advice as to how you deal with it?

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I know the feeling, I've experienced anxiety for a long time now. I don't really know how I deal with it though, I suppose i have found that as I get older it seems to shift by itself from just getting on with it all the time. Slowly, I am getting too old to worry and panic about small things that aren't even worth the thought. Don't get me wrong I still have days where it hits me, especially when its my time of the month when my hormones are all over the place. But I reckon it eases with age. I hope everything is okay, and just remember that its only a temporary feeling.

I don’t know if I have exactly what you have, but from your description it sounds similar. I’ve had a bit of social anxiety for as long as I can remember but it was never really a thing that got in the way, but last year (first year of college), I started getting panic attacks for no reason. First major one, I was just eating lunch at the dining commons and I felt my heart “stop” for a second, then my head starting spinning and my heart went out of control. A few days later it happened again as I was eating ice cream and watching a movie, only that time was a lot worse. I felt my heart skip a beat and I went into such a bad panic I walked myself to university health services. I couldn’t even walk straight. The next time it happened I was just hanging out in my dorm with my friends. I started to panic for no reason, I took myself to the hospital.

What triggered it for me was thinking about the feeling of panicking, and essentially not knowing what was going on. Over the winter break I went to another hospital to get my heart checked out, and I wore a heart monitor for 2 weeks to make sure it wasn’t failing.

After all the tests were done, nothing came back a problem, so it’s been ruled I just have anxiety. I just never knew how powerful it can be. In really stressful times, when I doze off to sleep, my body wakes up in a panic and I do that 15-20 times a night until around 4 am. But after I’ve gotten clarification that what I have isn’t life threatening, I’ve stopped having panic attacks. At this point its just general anxiety, but if you learn to check your pulse every time you feel it rising, know that you AREN’T in trouble, and keep yourself relaxed, anxiety is something you absolutely can live with, and if not there is always medicine you can take.

If you live at home, talk to your parents about it! They can help

I understand how you feel. Over the last four years I started to experience anxiety issues. Something I never had before, but if I did, I just never noticed it and it was real small. I'm not sure if it was because I had moved to a different state or just the severe lack of constant exercise, but it really started to become an issue. It got so bad, I finally decided to do something about it. I talked to my doctor and got on some new medication and eventually the anxiety went away. I'm doing much better now and if you need help, you should probably do the same. Talking to someone about it always helps and no one should be ashamed to admit they need a little help. I'm glad I was able to, but seriously, I do understand what you are going through.

I experience anxiety and panic pretty regularly. There are a handful of things I do to deal with it that are inadvisable (primarily that I do a lot of retail therapy despite being broke most of the time), but a handful of things I do that I would recommend include:

1. Meditation. I find that for me, panic and anxiety are usually rooted in not being present: I'm either ruminating on the past, or terrified about the future. I'm not sure if it's the same for you, but try asking yourself: are most of the things that send you into anxiety or panic things that are actually happening right now, or is it fear of the future or past that sets you off? Because if it isn't about what's going on in the moment, but the past or the future, a mindfulness practice is so essential. Mindfulness doesn't have to be meditation, but meditation is a really good one. If the idea of meditating in complete silence sounds difficult to you, try looking up guided meditations or meditation music tracks on websites like YouTube, it gives you something to focus on while still allowing you to be present and mindful. There are other ways to be mindful as well though, including body scans (mentally going through a checklist of different parts of your body and relaxing them, one by one, usually starting at the head and then going down the face, the neck, shoulders, arms, torso, legs, and then feet), eating a group of small foods (like candies or nuts) and eating them one at a time and really trying to mentally think about all the qualities of the food (is it chewy? crunchy? sweet? salty? sour?), and probably a lot more.

2. Fidget objects. I'm personally on the Autism spectrum and usually only see other Autistic people or people with ADHD talk about these being necessary for mental health, but I thought I'd bring it up anyways. Sometimes, I find it's way easier to go through stressful situations when I have something to do with my hands. I have this ball that is full of a foam that makes squeezing it feel weirdly similar to chewing gum, and any time I have a doctors appointment, I bring it with me, because I find it easier to talk when I have something to do with my hands. Having an activity to do helps me stay grounded, while also managing to help me divert some stress feelings into fidget feelings.

3. Consider your habits. There are some things people do that can increase their anxiety from a physical way. For example, if you drink a lot of coffee, or don't sleep enough, or intentionally do things that trigger anxiety more often than you need to (an example is looking at drama websites or not limiting your time reading about political and social issues). Are there any habits you have that might contribute to anxiety?

4. Make sure you have an outlet for your feelings. Do you journal? Do you have any creative outlets where you can express your panic and anxiety? Do you go to therapy, or do you have any friends you feel comfortable talking about your anxiety to?

4.5. Really emphasizing that, if it's available to you, therapy is seriously a good idea. Even if you feel embarrassed, or maybe feel like you aren't unhealthy enough to need it, there is nothing embarrassing about needing therapy, and even mentally healthy people should consider therapy to keep themselves healthy- sort of like how people go to a medical doctor for a check-up even when they aren't sick.

5. Music. I find music can be really good for working through your feelings. That being said, I think you should think a lot about what kind of music actually makes you feel better. I went through a phase where I listened to angsty music because I related to it and I thought that made me feel better, when in reality, I was just wallowing, and I've become a lot happier since I've switched to listening to more cheerful music. Not saying my way is best, for some people, I think the angsty music does really work. But if you aren't sure what works best for you, maybe make different playlists that have different moods (sad, happy, angry, etc) and then try journalling about your feelings while listening to the playlists to see which ones actually make you feel better.

6. Get a hobby. The times in my life that my anxiety is the worst is when I'm not invested in anything. Having something you love so much that it fills your thoughts can really help get rid of anxiety feelings.

7. Consider getting a pet if you are allowed. This is probably something you've already considered, but if you are allowed to have pets in your building, aren't allergic to them, etc, definitely consider getting one. Cats are probably one of the easier types of pets to take care of (don't be fooled by pet stores trying to trick you into thinking fish or rodents are super easy to take care of, a lot of pet stores sell smaller cages/tanks than are actually healthy for animals to try to sell the idea that they're "convenient pets"). It's scientifically proven that having a pet can decrease stress levels. If you already do have a pet, maybe try to schedule more time playing with them or snuggling with them even more, to really just soak up the benefits, along with making your pet happier with the extra attention.

8. As others have said, aromatherapy can help. Personally, something that helped me a lot are essential oils that can be applied to the wrists, and can be inhaled. Really strong smells can just totally bring you to another place. Candles work too, but they aren't quite as portable, nor as intense, in my personal experience. That being said, if you do decide to take my advice, definitely do research before you buy the oils, as not all oils are meant to go on the skin, and even the ones that do go on skin, usually you want to check the label for certain levels of purity or certain concentrations- despite essential oils sometimes being portrayed as 100% safe because they are all-natural, sometimes they can be made using plants that are poisonous, or poisonous in certain quantities, even when just applied to the skin rather than ingested, so you really wanna research each individual type of oil. It mostly depends on what you plan to do with the oils, along with what the oils are actually made out of, all plants are different so it really is an individual thing.

9. Really intense tasting food can help too. Definitely see what works best for you, as I could imagine something like that could potentially cause sensory overload and cause more anxiety, but I find intense sensory experiences often take me away from my nervous thoughts. Something like extremely sour candies, or really spicy food. Gum can also help the way that fidget items can, but are a little more nonchalant than a fidget toy.

10. Keep your room clean. I find that visual clutter can make my anxiety go from 1 to 100 so fast. Having a space you keep clean and can really relax in can really help. If your room is super messy and the idea of cleaning it stresses you out, just try to make a small dent every few days instead of having a huge cleaning day, and try not to have habits that will re-mess it (like leaving mugs around after you finish drinking from them). Rather than saying "by the end of the day, I'll have my room clean", every few days, I'll just set a timer for 15 minutes, and just clean my room however I can until the timer runs out.

Those are the top 10 tips I could think of, hope that wasn't too overwhelming!

When When I'm around people and social anxiety kicks in, I take my ear buds and listen to calm music to relax and prevent panicking. In the past I got stomach cramps before school and totally panicked, but by now I learned some coping methods that helped me a lot dealing with school, people and just the feeling of panic and anxiety in general.

My first step when I start to feel it coming is to just stop what i'm doing right now and take a moment to recognize the feeling.
Then, I would usually take some deep breaths or use some breathing techniques to calm down.
Here are some more ideas you could try:
1. Journaling: jotting down my emotions has helped me dealing with them.
2. Fidget. Take anything that you can reach (a pen, an eraser, etc.) And move your fingers. This releases pent up energy and relaxes.
3. Meditation. You might not see the effects right away, but after a few weeks, you should be more calm than before.
4. Doing some sports can also help.
5. Draw mandalas or fill in coloring books.
6. Have some alone time every day and take care of yourself. Take a bath and soothe yourself.
7. Read anything. This makes your brain concentrate on the reading and not your anxiety.
8. If you panic, try talking to a friend. My best friend knows I have a hard time socializing and that sometimes I get worked up too much over something. When that happens, she always helps me calm down.