Why does going outside help my panic attacks?
Monday, May 3rd, 2010 at
3:22 pm
Sometimes if I’m inside and I’m having a panic attack, I’ll go outside and all the sudden the panic attack will just disappear. I figured this out because one time I was at my cousin’s house and I was having an anxiety attack and things got pretty insane and she told me to go outside because she thought I was going to throw up. But I the minute I walked out the door it was like a weight off my shoulders. Why is this?
Filed under: Panic Attacks
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Maybe you felt better because you were able to get away from what was making you anxious. Best Wishes.
Go to your doctor is you continue to have panic attacks. It can be your heart, it can be lots of things.
Going outside allows for more oxygen, change in temperature, change in environment, panic attacks are physiological and can be induced by fear or anxiety. Obviously you have found a way to stop them that’s good.
psychological, you feel trapped in the house and what happens in there is out of ur control. could trigger claustrophobia attack also.
Normally with anxiety disorders people who experience panic attacks do so because they are in a confined area and need to be assured that there is a way to escape if something happens. This is very common and a lot of people have attacks in shopping centers, as they believe that escape is not always that easy. The open space allows you to feel free. Normal exercises for overcoming this include describing your anxiety levels to a person on a scale of say, 1 to 10, as well as breathing exercises and an array of exposure and visualisation techniques.
The source of the anxiety, which triggered the panic attack, was inside. View the techniques for control of anxiety/panic attacks, in section 8, at ezy build, below. Begin, on this first occasion, only, by holding your breath for 5, or 10 seconds: this will give you the confidence to realise that YOU CAN CONTROL YOUR BREATHING, but not pass out, or die (your autonomic nervous system resumes breathing, if you become unconscious).
Advice from a published psychiatrist on controlled breathing. (1.) Get a clock, or watch with a second timer. (2.) Practise for 5 minutes, 4 times daily, until proficient. (3.) Take a small breath in, and hold it, for 6 seconds. (4.) Think to yourself: "RELAX", just before breathing out. (5.) Try to feel a sense of releasing tension, as you breathe out. (6.) Breathe in for 3 seconds, then out, for 3 seconds. Try to make your breathing very smooth, and light, as you breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth, or nose. (7.) For the next minute, continue to breathe in, and out, every 3 seconds. (8.) Go back to step 3, at the end of the minute, and proceed through to step 7, doing this for 5 minutes. Use this at the very first sign of a panic attack starting, or any time you feel anxious, or tense.
Similar, but simpler advice, from a clinical psychologist is to breathe in to the count of 3: (one thousand one; one thousand two; one thousand three) each takes around a second to say to yourself, in your mind. Then breathe out to the count of 3. Repeat, until it begins to take effect. Understand panic attacks, and what triggers them, in your life (if it is unresolved anxiety, or stress, see sections 6, [page N first] or 42, [page i first] respectively). The paper bag method also works for most people, but is not suited to all circumstances, such as driving, or playing sport.
Another alternative is psychotherapy, to address its fundamental cause: read section 1, and examine the http://1-800-therapist.com/ & http://www.metanoia.org/choose/ websites, and use the locators to find a therapist, (and/or phone book, but only if necessary). I used to suffer from panic attacks, until I questioned what had changed in my life, at, or just before that time, to trigger them. For some people, this is enough. These days, I have instilled the habit of, whenever a situation occurs where panic is likely, I visualise a large, flashing, red "STOP!" sign, as vividly as possible, followed by repeating to myself: "stay calm" in my mind. You could try the same method. It usually takes 30 – 40 repetitions, for most people, to establish a new habit. I also suggest that you learn, then practise the controlled breathing technique, until competent, then employ it, at the very first sign of a panic attack.
Practice one of the relaxation methods on pages 2, 11, 2c, or 2i, daily, and when needed. Also, give the EFT a good tryout, to see if it helps you. There is also a version for use in public places, (if you like, you can claim to have a headache, as you massage/lightly tap your temples, but you would then be restricted to subvocalising: saying it to yourself in your mind). Section 53, and pages 2, 2.q and 2.o at http://www.ezy-build.net.nz/~shaneris also refer: "Even though I sometimes suffer from panic attacks, I deeply and completely accept myself." Note: the controlled breathing only helps with the symptoms (as do medications/herbal remedies): you need to address the underlying cause, and this requires some form of therapy, and Cognitive Behavio(u)ral Therapy has been shown to be effective.
Because many people can’t access/afford professional therapy, I include the EFT, and EMDR variant for them to try, free of charge. Cognitive Behavio(u)ral Therapy is generally available in most areas, but EMDR (see section 33) may well be worth trying, and is becoming more widespread.
A variant of Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing therapy, which has been used successfully for those people suffering from anxiety: it is easily learned, quick to use, yet can be very effective, is on page N, of section 6, and I use it before the relaxation techniques, because I have found that it makes them quicker to employ, and more effective. If you are fairly suggestible, (40% of people are) you could also try the searchbar at: http://www.hypnosisdownloads.com/ "panic attacks" or http://www.asktheinternettherapist.com/hypnosis_hypnotic_audiotapes.asp Stop Panic Attacks
CD – MP3, or professional hypnotherapy, or NeuroLinguistic Programming (Google this, or try Wikipedia.org).
Well, there’s obviously an anxiety of being "trapped" that you’re feeling. It’s possible that you suffer from some degree of claustrophobia.
Additionally, being outside gives you fresh air. Breathing properly is one of the key factors to calming down from a panic attack quickly.
If you want to learn how to calm down from a panic attack within 5 minutes, you should check out this article:
http://www.stop-anxiety-panic-attack.com/lp/what-to-do-when-a-panic-attack-hits.html