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Panic attacks and diaphragmatic breathing (05/03
RMD)
Panic Attack: What is it?
A sudden surge of overwhelming fear that comes without warning and
without any obvious reason.
It is far more intense than the feeling of being 'stressed out' that
most people experience.
Symptoms include: racing heartbeat; difficulty breathing, feeling as
though you 'can't get enough air'; terror that
is almost paralyzing; dizziness, light-headedness or nausea ;trembling,
sweating, shaking; choking, chest pains; hot flashes, sudden chills,
tingling in fingers or toes ('pins and needles') ;fear that you're going
to go crazy or are about to die.
This is the 'fight or flight' response that human beings experience when
in a situation of danger. It is triggered by a release of adrenalin. But
during a panic attack, these symptoms seem to arise from out of nowhere,
without any warning and without any way of stopping it. The level of
fear you experience is completely out of proportion to the actual
situation; often, in fact, it's completely unrelated.
It always passes within 10 to 15 minutes as the body cannot sustain the
'fight or flight' response for longer than that (the adrenalin runs
out). However, repeated attacks can continue to recur for hours.
A panic attack is NOT dangerous, but it can be
terrifying.
What do I do if I have a panic attack?
REMEMBER you will not die in an attack and that they don’t last long.
REMEMBER that most of the symptoms are due to breathing in too far and
too quickly.
REMEMBER that the attack can be switched off by breathing slowly and
concentrating on breathing out fully before the next breathe in. Using
your stomach muscles to breathe out is called diaphragmatic breathing
and helps switch off the adrenalin which fuels the attack.
LEARN .... How to do diaphragmatic breathing
1. Sit comfortably and put your hands on your stomach.
2. Start to breathe out by using your stomach muscles (you’ll feel your
hands go in as your stomach expels the breathe in your lungs). Count to
10 in your head as you do this.
3. Now take a breathe in and then go back to 2 and repeat over the next
few minutes.
Do this exercise and within a few minutes the attack will subside.
PRACTICE this breathing exercise at home when you are feeling well so
that you know what to do when you next have an attack.
Practicing these breathing exercises will give you control over your
panic disorder and allow the fear of an attack to subside. In time early
diaphragmatic breathing control of an attack will make panic attacks an
infrequent event
IF ALL ELSE FAILS
If the panic feeling is still too great after 5 minutes of
“diaphragmatic” breathing then use the paper bag trick. Breathe slowly
in and OUT of a paper bag for 5 minutes. The panic attack will switch
off.
If the attack will not subside in spite of your best efforts to bring it
under control, then phone and talk to a doctor.
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 Whitnash
Medical Centre
110 Coppice Road
Whitnash
Warwickshire
CV31 2LT
Tel: 01926 316711
Fax: 01926 427260
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