695: What to do when anxiety comes out of the blue
This week we’re addressing a listener question about panic attacks and how you can support yourself when anxiety seemingly comes out of nowhere.
Points discussed in this episode:
This week we’re addressing a listener question about panic attacks and how you can support yourself when anxiety seemingly comes out of nowhere.
“Sometimes I'll feel like my heart is flipping over with palpitations, and then I'm off to the races with a panic attack (I'vebeen checked out…my heart is fine). There seems to be a mental recall aspect to this…if I’m in the same situation, if the weather is the same, post-exercise seems to be a trigger also. I’ve been able to reduce the frequency of these things, but every so often I’m hit out of the blue.”
How the mind gets triggered
Once we’ve experienced anxiety in a particular place, situation or even climate, the mind can flag it as an experience to be wary of. How intensely we feel that can vary from mild unease, to full-blown anxiety.
The mind can think, 'last time you went there you got scared, so don’t go there again.'
And then we might avoid certain places or situations because we relate them to an anxious experience.
We talk about this in more detail in our Free Anxiety Slayer Starter Course, which you can find at anxietyslayeracademy.com
In the course, we share the story of someone who felt dizzy and feint at the food court in a shopping center. The next time she went back to that same spot, she started to feel anxiety and a strong aversion to getting any closer.
Fortunately, she knew why and she could stop and question her feelings. She took some deep breaths and reassured herself that she was fine to continue.
It helps to be able to question our anxiety and see if it’s coming from a past experience, then we can choose how we want to support that.
Why we can get anxiety post exercise
After exercise, our heart rate is elevated and that can feel similar to anxiety. But it’s usually beneath the level of our conscious awareness, so it can escalate into anxiety without us realizing what’s happening.
Our mind flags the elevated heart rate and links it to a past anxiety episode, then our nervous system gets involved and the feelings increase.
If you know what’s happening, you can use several techniques to feel calm while your heart rate slows.
You can use supportive self-talk - “That’s what heart’s do during exercise.”
- The long exhale breathing practice
- The calming point
- Splashing ice cold water on your face
- Or Tapping
All can help you feel calm and OK to wait a few moments and let your heart rate settle.
How to use the calming point after exercise or exertion
The calming point is found right in the center of the palm of your hand. Ayurvedic teacher Dr. Vasant Lad has introduced this vital energy point as a valuable aid in reducing anxiety.
To find the point, make a fist with your left hand and look for where your middle finger touches your palm. Now press that point with the thumb of your right hand for about a minute while you take deep steady breaths. Relax your jaw and let your shoulders drop and relax as you hold the point and keep taking slow deep breaths.
The Quick Anxiety Stopper
The Quick Anxiety Stopper is a sequence of three acupressure points that you can tap with your fingertips to reduce high anxiety states. It’s very effective for calming anxiety attacks where your heart is racing. Listen in for guidance on how to use the points.
We also have SOS guided Tapping Sessions on our Patreon, where you can follow along to calm anxiety when it’s suddenly peaked.
Tapping for Triggers
You can use EFT Tapping for situations where you’re aware of triggers.
For example, when you know you often feel anxious in a crowd, or in the supermarket. In next week’s episode we’ll walk you through how to do it.
For more anxiety support, join us on our Patreon where you can get a deeper dive into some of the topics we cover as well as over 200 downloads, including all of our guided relaxations and Tapping Sessions. Learn more at https://www.patreon.com/anxietyslayer