Is this a panic attack?
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Inner Peace
- Posts: 53
- Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2007 1:50 pm
I wake up in the middle of the night and my heart is beating very fast and I feel all uptight. Then frequently I cannot get back to sleep. I get up and do some things and calm down a little, then as soon as I go back to bed, my heart races again. Sonetimes I get up 15-20 times a night to try to unwind. Is this a panic attack, depression, or what? Also, what can I do during this "attack" to calm down? I haven't found anything that works.
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Guest
It sounds like panic attacks. We panic because of thoughts, feelings and dreams. We resist the attack so it keeps coming back. We must learn to accept and flow with it. It's uncomfortable, I know and I recommend the following:
Use thought stoppage. Put up that "stop sign" immediately. You can not stop the original thought but you can stop subsequent thoughts. Use your stop sign. Say it loud and clear or in your head.
Then start your calm breath. Breathe in, hold to the count of 4 and breath out slowly through pursed lips.
Then get out of your head. Have something by your bedside that you can hold onto. ie: a rubber ball, a doll, a stuffed animal and keep your attention focused on what you are holding. Use your calm breath anytime during this. You can also listen to yourself breathing. Put a soothing tape in. Put your relaxation tape in. Stay focused on whatever you are doing. Tell yourself how proud you are of yourself. You're doing a great job and with practice you will go back to sleep a lot easier. You'll know that the anxiety will not hurt you.
Use thought stoppage. Put up that "stop sign" immediately. You can not stop the original thought but you can stop subsequent thoughts. Use your stop sign. Say it loud and clear or in your head.
Then start your calm breath. Breathe in, hold to the count of 4 and breath out slowly through pursed lips.
Then get out of your head. Have something by your bedside that you can hold onto. ie: a rubber ball, a doll, a stuffed animal and keep your attention focused on what you are holding. Use your calm breath anytime during this. You can also listen to yourself breathing. Put a soothing tape in. Put your relaxation tape in. Stay focused on whatever you are doing. Tell yourself how proud you are of yourself. You're doing a great job and with practice you will go back to sleep a lot easier. You'll know that the anxiety will not hurt you.
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Guest
It sounds more like an anxiety attack to me. Once you have a panic attack, you never have to question if it was one. You definitely know for sure what it is. It's something that is hard to describe. Panic attacks are total fear, irrational fear, but it doesn't seem so at the time. With a panic attack you feel as if you have to run, the fight or flight thing and most of us choose or did choose the flight.
The tools from the program work great for both anxiety and panic attacks. Good luck to you!
The tools from the program work great for both anxiety and panic attacks. Good luck to you!