I start a breathing treatment with my nebulizer. I also keep a computer on in my bedroom 24/7 with a game on it. I start to play to keep my mind off the fact I think I am dying that very minute. My panic attacks don’t last too long but they sure are scary. I also do pursed lip breathing until I can get to my nebulizer.

Charlotte Parrish - Gainesville, GA

Nancy from Missouri recently posted this on the EFFORTS site, “Anxiety, to me, is the feeling of fear that I suffer from frequently when I think forward to participating in a new activity or sometimes just in attempting to accomplish what used to be a simple routine activity. I have had to learn to plan ahead to eliminate excessive movements and road blocks, if I am to accomplish my goal . Instead of being afraid, I either determine that a goal is too risky or difficult to accomplish, or Plan, Plan, Plan. Planning and/or avoidance has replaced anxiety for me.

I think the panic we experience when we become seriously short of breath is not just psychological but also a physical reaction. We have to get our mind and body under control and panic will go away.

I get Panic under control by:

1. Realizing I’ll pass out from a low level of O2 rather than die.

2. Stopping, sitting and leaning forward.

3. Begining very concentrated Pursed Lip Breathing, consciously thinking ‘Bad air out and good air in’ as a sort of mantra. Thinking “I have to make room for the good air by exhaling rather than gulping for air.”

4. Relaxing my muscles.”