Panic attacks occur when the amygdala (the emotional brain) wrongly pattern matches to a situation and responds inappropriately with a full fight or flight reaction, ready to deal with a perceived threat to your survival that doesn’t really exist. It’s like your brain is an overly sensitive smoke alarm, going off when you’ve burned the toast and there is no real emergency.
Symptoms of a panic attack (including palpitations, increased heart rate, sweating, shaking, occur, shortness of breath, fear of losing control or ‘going crazy’, nausea, dizzyness, feelings of unreality etc) occur when the body remains inactive and doesn’t use up all the adrenaline coursing through it in preparation for fight or flight. About 60% of panic attacks are accompanied by acute hyperventilation, whilst about 30% of panickers chronically hyperventilate (18 or more breaths per minute while relaxed). Symptoms are also exacerbated by hyperventilation, and this is how:
When you breathe in you take in oxygen to your lungs and the haemoglobin in the blood carries it to the tissues. The body cells use the oxygen in their various functions producing carbon dioxide as a by-product. The carbon dioxide is carried back to the lungs where it is breathed out. If you breathe faster however, you will be inhaling more oxygen than you need, forcing your body to expell that too along with any available carbon dioxide from the arteries.
In short, this can cause an imbalance leading to a rise in the pH level of the blood. This in turn can lead to vascular constriction resulting in diminished blood flow to the brain and other parts of the body, contributing to panic symptoms. Over time the kidneys may compensate by lowering the pH level but the person remains in a precarious balance which, in the presence of even a mild stressor, can easily become symptomatic again.
How to stop panic attacks and hyperventilation in their tracks
- Hold your breath. Holding your breath for as long as you comfortably can will prevent the dissipation of carbon dioxide. A period of 10–15 seconds, repeated a few times, is sufficient.
- Breath in and out of a paper bag – you will be inhaling the carbon dioxide that you exhaled. This will quickly restore the normal blood PH level. (However, there are many situations when it is not appropriate or feasible to use a paper bag.)
- Vigorous exercise – while breathing in and out through your nose. Running, brisk walking, going up and down stairs.
- The 7/11 technique – this is a simple but powerful technique that is easy to do. It has an immediate beneficial effect and takes the following form:
- Inhale to a count of seven
- Exhale to a count of eleven
The reason for making the out-breath last longer is that inhalation has been shown to trigger the sympathetic nervous system (arousal) and exhalation stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system (the relaxation response).
By breathing out more slowly than breathing in, you strengthen the relaxation response over the arousal response. If someone is hyperventilating, however, you need to start at a rate that feels comfortable for them, perhaps starting by inhaling to a count of 3 and exhaling to a count of 6, then gradually building up to 5/8 and then 7/11. The important thing to remember is to make the length of the out-breaths longer than the in-breaths.
Panic Away was created by Joe Barry after 10 years of research in the panic and anxiety field. He designed an incredibly effective step by step method for curing panic attacks, as well as general anxiety. If you suffer from panic attacks or severe anxiety, the simple technique outlined in this guide will help you get relief almost instantly.