EMERGENCY HELP IN TIME OF NEED

There is help for you. If at the moment you are in a panic state or situation, this is what you need to do to start to relieve it. Firstly, hold your breath for a count of 10. As you take a breath, start with one and go through to ten while you hold your breath. When you have counted up to ten now let your breath go and wait a few seconds and if you need to do it again, do so and this will restore the right balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen in your lungs.

This type of extreme distress with the breathing causes a problem is called Hyperventilation.

Because many sufferers of agoraphobia pant or breathe too deeply or shallow breath, the balance in the lungs change, bringing on a faint feeling or dizziness. By controlling the carbon dioxide and oxygen, when you are in an emergency situation, you will start to feel more comfortable, more in control and this can stop a panic attack.

CONTROLLED BREATHING

This is one of the most important KEYS to recovery.

Now to get your breathing back into an even rhythm we will explain carefully how this is done and when this has been practised regularly for a time, you will be able to use it at any time you need.

Sit in a comfortable chair and notice when you breathe normally that the chest and shoulders move, this is the usual way to breath. This method is to keep your chest and shoulders still and allow your stomach to extend out slightly when you take a breath. There is not a big difference between the two ways but this new way will stop over-breathing or the breaths being too small. The correct balance in the blood stream and lungs of oxygen and carbon dioxide is important to sufferers to stop a panic.

Another position to practise this is to lie on the floor on your back. Put a light book on your stomach and watch the book go up and down. This will make sure the stomach is moving.

Start breathing slowly through your nose and at the same time push your stomach out, then let it go back. Keep doing this and just to make sure it is even and slow, start to count as you breathe in, one, two, three, (then exhale out), four, five six, seven. Repeat this for five minutes. This is quite a simple method and after a while you will become good at it. Instead of hurrying away from situations that may cause a panic, this method of breathing can defuse a panic attack. This is an important tool to use to combat this debilitating condition.

At present you are probably feeling rather confused but gradually when you grasp these proven techniques you will find great benefit by using them.

If this is confusing perhaps you could ask the help of someone who can explain this clearly and show you how to do it. Don't worry about not having a clear understanding of this for you will move past this stage and once again return to composure. You will recover with more knowledge about the correct steps.

When in a room that is stuffy with no fresh air, this can cause distress and maybe a panic feeling showing the importance of the right amount or oxygen balance in the body. Make sure you can get near some fresh air.

RELAXING THE TENSE MUSCLES

You may have a tense body through continually feeling you must be on guard, in preparation of a possible panic. These can often come 'out of the blue'. To reverse this, by working with your body, it is necessary to take some time each day and do the following steps. Just tell yourself to relax does not work but this method will definitely reduce the tense muscles.

As an illustration we can compare these muscles with a Holland blind that is half-way down the window. The muscles are already tense, as with the blind half down, it must be pulled down even further to get it to return to its normal position, so the muscles must be tightened further to get them to return to normal.

Start tensing one muscle group at a time until you have done all of them. You will find some areas need more concentration than another. Maybe the shoulders are the problem or the stomach, but you will discover the weakest part and focus on that. By having a more relaxed body there is less likelihood of a panic occurring so this is a safe-guard.

There are sixteen muscles groups in the body so start with the toes. Curl your toes over tightly and hold them and count 10 seconds. Then let them go and you will feel them relax. The next area is the legs and thighs; do the same and tighten them by crossing them over on each other, this will make it easy to tense the whole leg; hold them for a count of ten, then let them go.

Continue up the body with the buttocks, tightening them, then the stomach by pulling it in, then fold your arms tightly, then stretch your arms away from the body, spreading your fingers out, push your shoulders up, turn your head, one side then the other. Lastly your face can be twisted up tightly, and separately your tongue can be pressed to the roof of the mouth for that too is a muscle and the quickest way to reduce any tension in the muscle groups of the body. If you want to try to do all the muscles at once, it can be difficult but fun because it is hard to concentrate on all parts of the body at once.

It is important to focus on the body first. Don't worry about your thoughts for they will change as your body becomes more trustworthy and you have some successes.

The anxiety state of a panic does not purposely happen to you; it can be prolonged by the wrong approach because of the lack of the right attitude towards it.

Agoraphobics have a tense approach toward any panic situation which makes the ircumstances worse. We need to correct this with understanding and knowledge.

Created and Managed by Webmaster, at Internet Support Services Australia Pty Ltd.Last updated OCTOBER 2004