by Connie Rae

Created on: August 04, 2009

As a mental health professional, I work with persons often who are suffering from the effects of worry, anxiety, and panic attacks. It is important for the individual who feels overwhelmed by these feelings to understand some things about themselves. Most important is to know that they are experiencing physical symptoms they may learn to have some degree of control over, in spite of how out-of-control they may feel. Following are four steps I use with my clients, followed by four additional areas to address in order to provide more long term management.

Step one - Recognize you are on the edge. Your heart is beginning to palpitate. Your gut is beginning to churn. You're feeling a growing warmth in your neck and jaw area. Your extremities are beginning to tingle. Your brain is beginning to cloud over. Overstress is announcing a potential panic attack. You know what's coming.

Step two - Take five deep breaths from the diaphragm. Feel your midriff area expand as you draw in a deep breath, slowly. No shoulder movement. Let each breath out slowly, measuring the outgo. Take another deep breath. Realize that the symptoms you are feeling are in reaction to accumulated, unrelenting stressors. You will not lose control. You will figure out what to do.

Step three - Continue to breathe, deliberately. Slowly, begin to flex your toes, fingers, wrists, ankles, to increase blood flow to your extremities.

Step four - What do you immediately need to do? Do it deliberately, methodically. Maybe it is sit down. Lay down. Excuse yourself from the situation. Take charge of a situation. Call someone. Take care of yourself first, so you can take care of the "enemy" you are facing.

Whatever has precipated your symptoms, remember that something in your brain has signaled your adrenal system into action. It may be a real, or a perceived, threat, but your body is trying to protect you from "danger." And in order to "feel better," you must literally fight, or run. The fight or flight system is in full swing.

Some people "fight' by yelling, screaming, hitting, assailing whatever object or person they perceive is responsible for their heightened state. If they do this, they may feel better - for a few moments. But then remorse, guilt, wisdom, kick in and they regret their irrational behavior. Or not. What they have done, though, is release some of the chemicals coursing through their system, by action. Unfortunately, bad behavior carries with

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