Of course, to deal with anxiety and panic attacks effectively, it’s important to speak to a clinical psychologist who can help you identify and address the underlying issues causing the attacks.

But for the moment let’s just focus on how to get through the physical symptoms when a panic attack occurs.

Accept What’s Happening

A panic attack is essentially your body reacting to danger – bringing on a burst of adrenaline and getting the body ready for the ‘fight or flight’ response. However, usually when a panic attack occurs the danger is only perceived or in your mind, and while you may even acknowledge and understand you are not in any immediate danger, your mind and body haven’t got the message and their natural reactions have taken over.

Once a panic attack has come over you, you can do little to prevent it, you just need to accept that it’s happening, understand it’s just a natural bodily reaction and ride it out. Trying to fight it aggressively is only going to make things harder. Know that soon the symptoms will pass and you’ll be able to catch your breath.

Instead, try to accept what’s happening. You might say to yourself, “I’m afraid, and I’m beginning to panic, but I’m not in danger,” for example.

Change Your Breathing

Many of our clinical psychologists teach patients to take control of their breathing in order to take control of the panic. The rush of adrenaline flooding your body encourages you to hyper-oxygenate your blood by breathing fast and high in the chest. If you were about to run away from physical danger, this would be great! When you’re trying to drive to work and get triggered, it’s a lot less helpful.

When you’re having a panic attack, you’ll find you’re breathing high in your chest. Change your breathing by drawing air all the way through your torso down into your belly, like you would during a yoga practice. Simply because this takes longer as a breathing pattern, it will slow your breathing and help the panic to abate.

Ground Yourself

Another common panic attack symptom is feeling disconnected from your body, or like you’re floating. Direct sensory input can help combat that feeling. Hold something that has a distinct texture, like a sweater or a spiky ball. If you’re with someone you trust, you could grab their hands and ask them to squeeze.

How to help someone else going through a panic attack

For friends and family, seeing someone go through a panic attack, it can feel frightening and you can feel helpless – you want to help, but don’t know how. Follow these tips to give some reassurance to your friend and help them through:

• If you’re watching someone who is beginning to panic, your instinct might be to say “You’re okay” but we wouldn’t recommend this. The person who is panicking has probably never felt less okay in their life. Try “You’re safe,” and “I’m right here, I’m not going away.”
• Help them to get their breathing under control with practical and level-headed directions. Ask them if they can take a few deep breaths with you. Model the deep breaths by taking long, slow inhales through the nose down into the tummy and exhalations through the mouth.
• Don’t touch them without permission, unless they are physically unsafe or you need to move them from the situation. You can make things much worse by crowding them. To help keep them grounded you can ask “May I hold your hand,” but if they say no, respect that.

Get some help

Panic attacks are terrifying and uncomfortable, but a single panic attack can’t hurt you. If you’re experiencing panic attacks, it’s important to know that you can feel better. Combinations of medications and talk therapy are often very successful in treating panic attacks, whether they’re related to a specific event or an underlying condition. While these tips can certainly help you get through a specific event, know that you deserve to feel better, and we can help with that.

To book an appointment with one of our clinical psychologists who can help you with anxiety and panic attacks just get in touch via phone or our contact form. We’re open weekdays, evenings and Saturdays by appointment only.

The post Panic Attack First Response appeared first on Psychological Health Care.

Between 10-20% of school-aged children experience anxiety, and there are many different forms of childhood anxieties and fears. It’s important for adults to know how to react, what to say – and what not to say.

Teach Kids to Verbalise Their Anxiety

The first and most important thing that parents can do to help their child manage anxiety is to teach them to give voice to their concerns. When kids talk to adults about the things that they’re concerned about, adults can then help them to determine if their fears are realistic or not, come up with strategies to combat the worries, and think about how to get through frightening situations, if they do arise.

If your child comes to you to tell you they’re concerned about something, don’t shut them down. Hear them out, and ask what you can do to help. Your child may just want to talk, or they may need some assistance in figuring out what to do.

Encourage Them to Face Their Fears

When your child says they’re afraid of a new activity, it can be instinctive to tell them they don’t have to go. Or, if you’ve spent money planning a trip or scheduling a holiday, you might feel angry that something you thought of as exciting is now scary. Either way, stay calm when you talk to your child.

It’s important to encourage kids to face their fears, and not let them become paralysed by anxiety. Still, be careful, sometimes, kids have underlying fears about an event that they’re not communicating, and pushing them may backfire.

Set Realistic Expectations

If your child says they’re afraid of a test, or that someone at school will laugh at them if they make a mistake, it can be tempting to promise that everything will be fine. But as a parent, it’s important to set realistic and healthy expectations.

Instead of promising that external circumstances won’t be scary – something you can’t guarantee – remind your child that they are strong and brave, and that whatever happens, they’ll be okay. Remind them that you’ll love them no matter what, even if they don’t get an A on the test or they don’t make the footy team.

Reward Bravery and Schedule Downtime

When your child does something that they were scared to do, acknowledge their effort. Ask them how it felt to be brave, and reward their effort with a special trip or some quality time together.

Also, remember that kids who are over-scheduled are the first ones to experience anxiety. Make sure that your child has time to relax and play as well as participate in school and activities.

Model Good Self-Care

Kids who have anxious parents are more likely to become anxious kids. Some parents first see their own unhealthy anxieties when they see their kids developing the same fears that they experience.

One of the most powerful things that adults can do for their anxious kids is to model great self-care. Show your child what it looks like to take some time off, relax and take care of yourself. Show them positive self-talk when you make a mistake or are nervous about a work project or life event.

While much can be done at home to help kids manage anxiety, some kids need the help of a therapist or psychologist to get a good handle on their anxiety. If your child expresses a desire to hurt themselves, has a sudden change in mood or behaviour, or seems to be unable to manage their anxiety despite following the suggestions above, seeking out the advice of a child psychologist can be a tremendous help.

This can often be more nerve-racking for parents than for the kids, but rest assured that many of our team of clinical psychologists have great experience in child psychology. We can work with you and your child to find the root of the anxiety and help you both to find ways to address the situation – book a consultation today.

The post Easing Anxiety in Kids: 5 Simple Tips to Try at Home appeared first on Psychological Health Care.

Juggling all of these new experiences and responsibilities can be a lot for anyone to take, and if you are prone to depression or other mental health problems it can be an even more difficult time as, according to MacGeorge, Samter, & Gillihan 2005, academic stress can further contribute to depression.

Fortunately, there are some ways to get these pressures into perspective and beat stress and depression effectively. Here are 5 ways to improve your ability to cope.

1. Create a routine

Although everything will be new to you in the beginning, try to get your bearings and get into a good routine as early on as you can. With more freedom and maybe a course with light classwork, it can be tempting to stay up late partying or talking with new friends and sleeping-in late, but this sort of disruptive schedule can take its toll over long periods.

Instead try to create a routine with a good balance of social activity, exercise, study time and rest. Get up early and get some exercise; make time each week to shop for and cook fresh food (not just frozen pizzas and noodles!); schedule time at the library to focus on studies with regular fresh air breaks; and of course make time to catch up with friends too! Maintaining a good routine helps to keep you positive, organised and focused – all very important things for juggling social and academic commitments.

2. Keep an eye on your physical health

Eating well, making sure to get plenty of Vitamin C and getting enough exercise and sleep will make a big difference to your mental health. Many university campuses have gyms with subsidised membership fees, so consider joining a gym or a sports team to get some aerobic exercise at least once a week (also a great way to make new friends!).

Even taking a walk each morning as part of your routine will give you great benefits as exercise has a powerful effect on your mental health, reducing anxiety and elevating your mood. Yoga and meditation – even 12 minutes a day – can also help support you to keep worries in perspective and release the effects of stress from your body.

3. Start building social networks

Although your parents and teachers will no doubt place a big emphasis on keeping up with your studies at uni, and don’t get us wrong that is of course important, but so is the social aspect of starting a new chapter of your life. Isolation is known to increase stress and depression, so when moving away from family and school friends it is really important to get yourself out there to make new friends and create that new support system for yourself.

It can be intimidating at first because you are away from your familiar environment, particularly for those with social anxiety, but keep in mind that almost everyone else in the room is in the same boat! Don’t be afraid to take that first step and attend social events when you can, so you can begin to build social networks that support you in your new life at uni. If social situations make you nervous, practice some deep breathing or a few minutes of meditation before you go out, and visualise yourself feeling calm and interacting well with people.

Find clubs or societies that interest you or allow you to explore a new hobby with others. There are many of these opportunities available at uni and they are a great way to meet like-minded people.

4. Watch your alcohol intake

There’s no escaping the fact that alcohol plays a big role in uni life. You have more freedom to do what you want, going to dorm parties and college bars, with alcohol being a common ‘social lubricant’ used to ease the stress associated with socialising with new people out of your comfort zone.

However, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK, alcohol actually has a negative effect on your ability to cope with stress. It affects the chemistry of the brain in a way that increases the risk of depression. In excessive amounts it also has the ability to cause more problems in your life that increase stress and depression, such as arguments with others, and waking up the next morning feeling anxious and jittery.

While telling university students not to drink alcohol will almost always fall on deaf ears, at least drink in moderation and know your limits. Make sure to keep some alcohol-free events as part of your social calendar and when you do drink, alternate alcoholic drinks with soft drinks or water to pace yourself. Seek help if you feel that your drinking has got out of control.

5. Talk to someone

A study by MacGeorge, Samter, & Gillihan in 2005 found that supportive communication made a difference to the levels of academic stress experienced by students. Supportive communication includes emotional support (sympathy and affection) and advice and information that is helpful to your situation. Don’t battle on alone if you’re feeling overwhelmed. Talk to a friend – be that a new friend going through the same thing or call an old friend on the phone; or even talk to a tutor, family member or uni counsellor. Everyone goes through a period of transition when making a big change in their life so you’re sure to find someone who will understand and talk through those emotions with you.

But if you find your anxiety or depression is getting too much to handle you can always talk to a professional. Our team of Clinical Psychologists are highly experienced in helping people like you through new emotions and difficult times. We are on hand Monday to Saturday at our clinic in Dianella – just get in touch to make a booking.

The post Starting Uni? 5 Tips to beat stress & depression when away from home appeared first on Psychological Health Care.

Mindfulness is at first glance a simple concept (if you need a refresher check out our mindfulness 101 post), but without regular practice, the mind will tend to fall back into its old habits of worrying about the past and future and allowing negative thoughts to create unnecessary, harmful doubt and anxiety.

Psychologists, like us, can only see patients for a short time each week, but patients can work on mindfulness exercises to reduce anxiety throughout the week with the help of new technology. There are many mindfulness apps for smartphones that can guide people through practicing mindfulness each day. Here we review the top 5 mindfulness apps recommended by psychologists.

Smiling Mind

Smiling Mind is a lovely Australian mindfulness meditation smartphone app to experience, for both adults and kids. It was created as a non-profit initiative to improve the lives of Australians through increasing clarity, calm and contentment and reducing stress via mindfulness instruction and encouragement.

With soothing colours and a simple, modern design, Smiling Mind is enjoyable to use and very intuitive. The app can be downloaded for free, and then getting started is as simple as registering and choosing your age preference. Each age group is given a set of guided meditations designed to bring users from a beginning level to a ‘mindful master’ level over time.

Kids start with a fun meditation called ‘The Bubble Journey,’ while adults start with a basic body scan. Badges, reminders and a recorded history help to encourage daily use and make practicing mindfulness a purely positive, rewarding experience.

Headspace

Headspace, conceived by meditation teacher Andy Puddicombe, coins itself as ‘a gym membership for the mind.’ Users can start out with a free 10-day mindfulness meditation program known as ‘Take 10,’ and then begin a paid subscription if interested in more content. This app focuses on training the brain through a selection of special series meditations in areas such as health, relationships and performance, as well as through dozens of one-off and bite-size guided meditations for a quick centring, calming mindfulness fix. Tracking statistics, the ability to connect with friends and rewards help to make Headspace one of the most engaging smartphone mindfulness apps.

Calm

Calm is a simple smartphone app that teaches mindfulness and makes it easy to follow a daily meditation practice. The app can be downloaded for free with plenty of content, including more than 20 soothing audio/visual nature backgrounds, trackable timed sessions and free guided meditations, such as the 7 Days of Calm series and a meditation for easing tension and a body scan. Calm continually adds more unique content, but users have to subscribe for access.

Stop, Breathe & Think

Mindfulness is all about being present and aware in each moment. What better way to instil this concept than to Stop, Breathe & Think? This wonderful mindfulness app makes it easy to take a daily pause in your day to check in with yourself, and through regular practice, you can broaden perspective and ‘create your own personal force field of calm and peace.’ Users can enter their present mood and then the app provides options for the most useful meditations to use. Like Smiling Mind, Stop, Breathe & Think was created by a non-profit organisation (Tools for Peace), and is entirely free.

Simply Being

This is a straightforward app created by husband and wife Meditation Oasis team, Mary and Richard Maddux. Mary is a counsellor and healing arts practitioner, and her husband is a music composer. There are limited options, although the simplicity is what makes this app appealing. For a onetime fee users can download and listen to timed meditations on their smartphone with basic guided meditation vocals and optional background music or nature sounds.

Like anything worth embracing, mindfulness takes practice. The more you practice, the better you will be at it and the more you can improve your mental state. The guidance of a trained psychologist or meditation teacher can greatly enhance your path to mindful living, but for most of us a weekly session is the only help we are going to receive. This means we still must take the time to practice mindfulness on our own to effectively bring it into our lives and enjoy all the amazing benefits of being mindful.

The post 5 Top Mindfulness Apps Recommended by Psychologists appeared first on Psychological Health Care.

But for many people, Christmas is not a joyful time. Perhaps you or someone you know is dealing with losing a loved one. Or maybe you are battling alcohol or drug addiction, or suffering from loneliness, isolation, depression or anxiety.

Here are a few pointers on how to improve your ability to cope, and how to take care of yourself and others around you if you know someone who might be struggling.

1. Feeling Lonely, Homesick or Isolated

If the media images are to be believed, Christmas is all about family togetherness – but this is not the reality for many people. A huge percentage of Perth’s population is made up of immigrants from all over the world – Ireland and the UK, Europe, Asia, India, Africa. So it’s not surprising if maybe you are feeling homesick or left out of the sense of closeness and comfort that Christmas tends to promote. Here are some ways to combat loneliness at Christmas:

• Invite other people who are at a loose end around for a meal. Particularly look out for elderly neighbours
• Spend the day volunteering
• Find community, religious or other social events that you can join – a chance to make new friends
• Embrace the solitude. If you are facing the day alone, turn it into an opportunity to really treat yourself. Plan a special day to nurture yourself, for example, having a movie marathon, eating your favourite foods, or taking a walk to a favourite spot in nature.

2. Dealing with Anxiety, Depression and Grief

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, one in five Australians aged 16-85 experience a mental illness in any year, and Christmas can magnify anxiety and depression as you face additional pressure to feel ‘joyful and merry’. Financial stress can also increase anxiety as you try to buy presents on a tight budget.

If you have lost a loved one, Christmas can be a painful reminder of your bereavement, bringing your grief to the surface as you miss the time you would have spent with them. Or if some family relationships have broken down you may be confronted with stressful decisions about who to spend Christmas with and grieving how things used to be in the good times.

Here are some suggestions on how to cope with anxiety, depression and loss, as well as how to support others dealing with these issues:

Take Time Out

Even if it is just 15 minutes, regularly spend some time doing a stress-reducing activity such as:

• Walking
• Listening to music that makes you feel calm
• Doing some breathing exercises
• Using a simple meditation app like ‘Headspace‘, or a basic Progressive Relaxation technique.
• Treating yourself to a massage to reduce muscle tension
• Reading a book you enjoy

Know Your Limits and Plan Ahead

Have an exit strategy and a back-up plan for every potentially stressful or upsetting situation. Plan ahead so that you don’t have to come up with an excuse in an emotionally heightened state. If you know that shopping centres and crowds are trigger points for you, try to shop online and restrict shopping trips to off-peak times for short periods. Set a budget and stick to it, and try not to overschedule, leaving a day or two between each big activity.

Reach Out for Help

Rather than waiting until you have reached crunch point, be alert to your warning signs and reach out for help as soon as you need it. Talk to your doctor or mental health professional if you are struggling. If you are under treatment for any mental illness, make sure you have the emergency number for contacting your doctor or other health professional during this time.

If you are grieving and need some support, you can call the Griefline. You can find a full list of national helplines and websites for depression here.

Set Clear Boundaries

At Christmas, there can be a lot of pressure to say yes when you want to say no, which can lead to overwhelm and tip the scale when it comes to triggering any mental health issues. Unfortunately, Christmas time can highlight divisions and emotional tensions in families.

Maybe you want to simply spend a quiet Christmas without the big family dinner. If so, you might need to be firm with family members. If you feel unable to participate in every activity, choose those that are most important to you, and explain to others that you need to take care of your health at this time.

Accept and Allow Feelings

If you have experienced a bereavement or separation, take the time to acknowledge your feelings without trying to change them. Know that it is normal to not feel in the “holiday spirit” when you are dealing with a loss, and that Christmas heightens the memories and emotions. Don’t be afraid to reach out and allow yourself to keep Christmas as low-key as you need it to be, making sure to do nurturing things for yourself at this time.

If Someone You Know is Struggling

Allow them the space to feel their feelings. Provide a listening ear but don’t try to fix or save. Simply being accepting of someone as they are right now, and being open to hearing how they feel, goes a long way. You might feel helpless if someone you care about is struggling. Recommend some of the resources mentioned in this article.

3. Coping with Substance Issues at Christmas

Alcohol is a prominent guest at most festive season parties, adding to Australia‘s already well-established drinking culture. And if you have substance abuse issues or are close to someone who does, this is a particularly challenging time to navigate.

Stress, anxiety, isolation or depression can all make you more susceptible to any addictions you suffer from. If alcohol issues are a problem, see Alcoholics Anonymous to find a meeting near you, or try Narcotics Anonymous for drug problems. Or see an addiction counsellor. Plan ahead to create safe and healthy alternatives to parties, such as going to a movie with a friend or going to the gym. If you are affected by someone else‘s drinking, you can go to an Al-Anon meeting. 
Christmas can really pile on the stress as well as highlight any existing issues, so it’s a good idea to be prepared and find some ways to minimise the impact. If you are struggling at this time, you are not alone – and there is help available. Get in touch with us to talk things through.

The post Looking after Yourself and Eachother This Holiday Season appeared first on Psychological Health Care.