If you have ever experienced the fear of a sudden panic attack,
You are in the right place.
At the first sign of your racing heart,
Shortness of breath,
Sweating,
Dizziness,
Or that overwhelming sense of impending doom.
Here are some steps you can take to shift out of panic and back into peace.
Step 1.
Mentally or out loud state the facts.
To remind yourself that although these sensations are scary,
They are not dangerous and they will pass.
Step 2.
Shift your awareness outward.
Look around and find five things you can see around you.
Next,
Observe four things you can physically touch right now without moving.
Then notice three things you can hear right now.
Awaken curiosity.
What are two things you can smell?
Then what is one thing you can taste?
Step three,
We will practice a physiological sigh.
This is a pattern of breathing.
Where we inhale through our nose,
Deep into our belly.
Then another big sip up into our chest,
Filling up completely.
Then we take a long,
Slow exhale through our mouth,
Emptying out completely,
Making sound to activate our vagus nerve.
By reinflating empty lungs and rapidly offloading carbon dioxide.
It triggers our parasympathetic nervous system.
To quickly reduce anxiety and lower our heart rate.
So let's practice that now.
I'll demonstrate.
And then please feel free to join me.
We will continue to breathe in this way for two minutes.
Then we will tune into our body.
To notice what has shifted for you.
Before we begin,
Please take a moment to make sure you are in a place where you feel safe.
This is not a practice for when you are driving or around water.
Give yourself the gift of your total awareness for this little sliver of time.
Now inhale fully all the way up to the top and hold.
Take a moment here in the stillness to think of something you are grateful for.
And then slowly and gently sigh the breath out through your mouth.
All the way down to the bottom,
Empty and hold.
As you rest in the stillness,
Think of a moment of joy.
Whenever you feel the need to breathe again,
Invite a slow and steady breath.
To simply fall in and out of your body.
With ease.
Scan your body from the top of your head.
All the way down to your feet.
And notice all sensations within.
No judgment.
All sensations are welcome here.
Even discomfort or anger.
Explore whatever is coming up for you with curiosity.
Like a movie up on a screen.
And you are simply sitting in the audience watching.
Then thank your body for calming down.
Thank your breath for bringing peace.
If we practice this over and over again.
Then the moment we feel that familiar sensation of panic arising,
Our body will know what to do to calm us down once more.
Thank you for taking this time.
Thank you for trusting me to be your guide.
I wish you well,
My friend.
