Reclaim your calm: how to tame a panic attack

How to tame a panic attack

Panic attacks are frightening. They often happen without warning. There’s sweating, your heart races and your pulse gets rapid. You may even feel shortness of breath and think you’re having a heart attack, which increases your panic. Of course, you should never ignore heart attack symptoms or assume what you’re experiencing is a panic attack.

Just breathe

When you feel yourself starting to panic, try responding with these calming techniques. They’re commonly referred to as mindfulness exercises and you can do them in about five minutes. They should help you feel calmer almost immediately, allowing you to tackle the challenges of your day.

• Focus on your breath moving in and out of your body
• Take a quick mental inventory of what’s happening to your body
• See if you can really be aware of your feelings and emotions
• Look around and really see, hear and smell your surroundings
• Pick something up and really experience its texture in your hands

Keep it positive

Here are some additional mindfulness exercises you can do at work and at home:

• Take breathing breaks throughout your day
• Choose a natural object from your immediate environment — like a flower, clouds or an object in the room — and focus on it for a minute or two
• Each time you think a negative thought, label the thought as unhelpful and release it
• When you smell food, take a moment to appreciate how lucky you are to have good food to eat

Get support

Whether you’re an individual looking to reduce stress with self-care resources, or an organisation taking steps to lower employee burnout by helping your workforce develop resilience, there are programs and resources to help put people on the path to better mental and physical health.

This information is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images and information is for general information purposes only.

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