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.

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.