International Panic Day 2021: From Taking Deep Breaths to Counting Backwards, Here Are Five Ways To Cope With Panic Attacks

Out of sorts, pissed off and stressed out in a world still reeling with a pandemic? Well, it's a perfect time to celebrate International Panic Day - a mock holiday celebrated on June 18th to raise awareness about how nerved out people are in their daily lives. It's one day, where you put your mental health first, panic with abandon, and then sit back, relax, take deep breaths and a semblance of calm in your lives.

Having a good freak out is not just necessary but healthy to keep our minds healthy in check. Pretending everything is just dandy -day in and day out - can be quite taxing when obviously we're all under tremendous stress and in the midst of turmoil. This will eventually lead to a panic attack. So instead of suppressing it all in, on this day, recognize the signs of stress and acknowledge it and perhaps learn to deal with it. Here are five ways to deal with a panic attack.

Control Your Breathing

Hyperventilating is one of the common symptoms of a panic attack. When you hyperventilate, you take deeper breaths than usual, as a result, you feel short of breath, which leads to dizziness. So when you feel out of control with your breaths, concentrate on the rhythm of your breathing patterns. Doctors recommend breathing in for three seconds, hold your breath for two and then breathing out for three seconds.

Distract Yourself

Panic attacks are often fuelled by negative thoughts. Rather than focusing on all the doom in your life, try to distract yourself by thinking happy thoughts or perhaps a joyful memory. If you cant manifest a happy memory, try taking in your surrounding, there must be something that distract worthy and concentrate on that. Perhaps a picture of dogs or flowers will come to the rescue.

Count Backwards

As rudimentary as it sounds, this is an effective tool to shift your focus from panic attacks to something that is seemingly simple but might take a lot of focus when in the middle of a freak-out. Counting backwards from 100 by 3s helps to focus and override the anxious thoughts or feelings.

Repeat Positive affirmations

As frivolous as this sounds, sometimes reminding yourself of something positive can be a great therapeutic session. Positive affirmations that remind you that it's just a phase, it'll pass, can help you navigate through a panic attack.

Call a Freind 

This might be the last resort, since when in the middle of a panic attack you can barely think a straight thought, so dialling digits might seem like a herculean task. However, if you can manage to dial someone, dial a friend as they can talk you off the ledge and keep you calm during a high-stress situation.

(This article is written for an informative purpose and should not be substituted for medical advice. Kindly consult your doctor before trying any tips.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 16, 2021 09:22 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).