We live in times filled with worrying news, and it's no surprise that anxiety feels like a constant companion for so many. Statistics point to anxiety disorders being incredibly common, but beyond diagnoses, it feels like almost everyone experiences significant anxiety nowadays. It's probably the most frequent reason people seek out therapy – that feeling of unease, worry, and sometimes, overwhelming panic.

Many have felt the sudden, terrifying grip of a panic attack. It's a topic that needs discussion because anyone, especially during periods of intense stress, can experience one. The frightening part? If you don't know what's happening, your mind jumps to the worst conclusions.

"Am I Dying?" – The Frightening Feelings of Panic

When a panic attack hits someone unfamiliar with the experience, their first thoughts are often catastrophic: "I'm having a heart attack," "I can't breathe," "I'm going to suffocate," "This is the end." Naturally, these thoughts pour fuel on the fire, intensifying the panic and making everything feel much worse.

So, let's start with the most crucial piece of information: No one has ever died from a panic attack. Nobody suffocates. No one's heart stops because of panic itself. Understanding this, truly internalizing it, is the first step. It helps quieten some of the terrifying thoughts that spiral during an attack, making it slightly less scary.

Recognizing the Signs: What Does a Panic Attack Feel Like?

How do you know if it's a panic attack? Key symptoms often include:

• A Racing Heart: It might beat so fast and hard you can feel it pounding in your chest or even hear a pulsating in your head.
• Feeling Short of Breath: It feels like you desperately need oxygen, but no matter how deeply or quickly you try to inhale, you just can't seem to get enough air.
• A Sense of Unreality (Derealization/Depersonalization): This is a particularly strange and unsettling symptom. It can feel as if you're not in your own body, perhaps watching yourself from the outside, or like you're looking at the world through a thick window. Things around you might seem unreal, dreamlike, or distorted. Time might even feel like it's slowing down.

These feelings of unreality can be deeply frightening, making people worry something is seriously wrong with their minds. But it's important to know that even a mentally healthy person under extreme stress can experience these sensations during a panic attack. It's a response to intense inner turmoil, not a sign of psychosis. It often feels like losing control over your body and your surroundings.

Why Me? Understanding the Roots of Panic Attacks

Why do these happen at all? Think of yourself like a structure built from Lego bricks. Each stressor in life removes a few bricks. Eventually, with enough bricks gone, the structure becomes unstable, wobbly, and hard to keep balanced. During times of intense, prolonged stress, you might feel like you've almost crumbled, using all your energy just to hold yourself together and manage the inner chaos.

In this fragile state, even a small trigger – maybe alarming news, a sudden reminder of a past stressor, or an unexpected difficult situation – can be the final nudge that causes the structure to collapse. That collapse is the panic attack. It feels like a complete loss of control.

This often creates a vicious cycle: The panic attack starts -> You feel physical symptoms and a loss of control -> This feeling scares you intensely -> The fear triggers more panic -> The intensified panic creates more fear, and so on. It's a self-perpetuating loop. Logically, breaking this cycle means stepping out of the terrifying thoughts and the intense focus on the physical sensations.

Another way to think about it is like filling a container with water. Our emotional lives are like that container. If we constantly suppress our feelings – anger, sadness, fear, even joy – stuffing them down instead of acknowledging or expressing them, the container gets full. Eventually, just like an overfilled glass, it has to overflow. The psyche needs a release. Sometimes, it chooses a panic attack – an intense, overwhelming burst of emotion (primarily fear) – as a way to abruptly discharge that built-up pressure and empty the container.

Why do some people experience panic attacks while others seem to manage stress differently? People have various ways, healthy and unhealthy, to release emotional pressure. Some channel it into sports, art, or music (singing, for instance, can be a fantastic release, like a controlled scream). Others might unfortunately take it out on loved ones. Some find healthy outlets through therapy or creative expression. If someone only suppresses, never finding a way to let the pressure out, the psyche might eventually force a release through something like a panic attack.

Building Resilience: Preventing the Panic Storm

If panic attacks are often linked to accumulated stress and suppressed emotions, prevention involves addressing these factors:

1. Connect with Your Emotions: The first step is not to learn suppression, but healthy expression. Work towards recognizing what you're feeling, understanding why, and finding healthy ways to express it. This could be talking to someone, journaling, engaging in physical activity, or creative pursuits. This emotional literacy is key. Working on this often reduces panic attacks and can even lessen physical symptoms linked to stress (psychosomatics).
2. Practice Self-Reflection: Regularly check in with yourself. When you experience a strong emotion (positive or negative), take a moment to understand it. A useful technique is to jot down:
   • The Situation: What objectively happened? (e.g., "My boss raised his voice at me about the report.")
   • Your Thoughts: What went through your mind? (e.g., "He's so unfair," "I must be incompetent," "This is awful.")
   • Your Emotions: What specific feelings did you have? (e.g., Anger, fear, shame, frustration.)
   • Your Reaction: What did you actually do or feel like doing? (e.g., "I felt scared but argued back," or "I froze and couldn't speak.")

   Doing this regularly builds awareness of your emotional patterns and helps you process experiences, making overwhelming build-up less likely. Your psyche won't need such drastic measures like a panic attack to get your attention.

Riding Out the Wave: A Grounding Technique for the Moment

If a panic attack does hit, remember the cycle: intense focus on the panic and fear fuels more panic. To break it, you need to shift your focus away from the internal chaos and back to the external, real world. Here’s a simple but powerful technique:

1. Look Around: Name three things you can see. Be specific. ("I see a red book on the table," "I see a blue pen," "I see a black chair.")
2. Listen: Name three things you can hear. ("I hear the clock ticking," "I hear traffic outside," "I hear the refrigerator humming.")
3. Touch: Name three things you can touch or feel. Describe the texture. ("I feel the smooth, cool surface of the desk," "I feel the soft fabric of my sleeve," "I feel the hard floor under my feet.")
4. Sense in Your Body: Name three sensations in your body (try to find neutral ones). ("I feel my feet pressing against the floor," "I feel the weight of my body in the chair," "I feel my hands resting on my lap.")

Keep repeating this cycle – three things you see, three things you hear, three things you touch, three things you feel – until the panic starts to subside. If you run out of things, start again with different colours or objects. The goal isn't to make the sensations vanish instantly, but to shift your attention. By focusing deliberately on the tangible world around you, you interrupt the spiral of fearful thoughts and regain a sense of control over your focus, which helps the body calm down.

Understanding what's happening and having a plan can make a huge difference when facing the overwhelming wave of a panic attack. Remember to be patient and kind to yourself.

References:

• Bourne, E. J. (2020). The Anxiety & Phobia Workbook (8th ed.). New Harbinger Publications.

  This widely recommended workbook provides practical, step-by-step exercises for understanding and managing various anxiety disorders, including panic attacks. It details techniques like relaxation training, challenging anxious thoughts, breathing exercises, and exposure therapy, directly relevant to the coping and prevention strategies discussed in the article (particularly the grounding technique and cognitive self-reflection). Relevant sections often include chapters on relaxation, overcoming negative self-talk, and specific strategies for panic.