For people who experience panic attacks, hyperventilation is usually one of the first symptoms and it can trigger many of the symptoms that follow, such as lightheadedness and dizziness.  Learning how to stop hyperventilation can help you greatly decrease the severity of an anxiety attack, and it can be easier than you might think.

One of the most popular methods of stopping hyperventilation is paper bag breathing.  This method is designed to help regulate the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your blood.  To stop hyperventilation with the paper bag method, follow these simple steps:

• Hold the paper bag over your nose and mouth using your hand

• Take between six and twelve normal breaths while holding the bag in place, breathing in and out of the bag

• Take the bag away when your breathing starts to feel normal again

Diaphragm breathing is another popular method of stopping hyperventilation, and it is slowly gaining favor over the paper bag method with doctors and health professionals who worry that the paper bag method can allow too much carbon dioxide to accumulate in the blood.  To use diaphragm breathing, follow these easy steps:

• While standing up or lying on the floor with both knees bent, put one hand on your chest and one on your stomach just below your ribs

• Take a deep inward breath, allowing the air to push your stomach outward while keeping your chest still

• Count to seven slowly while inhaling

• Now, purse your lips like you would if you were whistling and slowly exhale through your mouth, allowing your stomach to deflate

• Count to twelve while you exhale

• Repeat five to ten times or until symptoms subside and breathing returns to normal

Calming Racing Thoughts

Racing thoughts are characteristic of anxiety and panic disorders.  This can be a very disturbing symptom, and it is one that can occur at almost any time.  When your thoughts are racing, it can be hard to focus on a single idea or to express what is on your mind.  Learning how to calm racing thoughts can help alleviate anxiety.

One great tip to help prevent racing thoughts from occurring is to actually start and end each day with goal setting and reflection.  When you get up each morning, take the time to set a list of goals for your day.  Decide what you want to accomplish, set up an order for your tasks, and work to stick as closely to your schedule as possible.  When you already know what you have to do, you are less likely to suddenly find yourself bombarded with thoughts about everything that needs to be done.

At the end of the day, spend a few minutes reflecting on the occurrences of the day.  Examine whether your goals were accomplished and spend time thinking about anything unusual or significant that happened.  By setting aside a specific time for this, you can help prevent racing thoughts while you are trying to go to sleep.

Practicing positive affirmations can be another excellent way to help stop racing thoughts.  You will find that more often than not, racing thoughts are negative.  You will likely find yourself with a racing list of things you haven’t accomplished, things that could go wrong, or other negative thoughts.  By starting and ending each day with positive affirmations and saying them whenever you start to feel stressed, you help to change your overall cycle of thought.

Easing Muscle Tension

Muscle tension is a very common symptom for people with anxiety, and it is one that can be very bothersome.  Whether you are trying to do your job, trying to relax, or trying to go to sleep, muscle tension can be very disruptive. It can also create headaches, backaches, and other pains.  Alleviating muscle tension is a great way to reduce anxiety, and there are a number of different ways that you can achieve it.

Staying hydrated is a surprisingly effective way to help reduce muscle tension.  Everything that we do requires our bodies to consume water, and studies show that most people aren’t taking in a sufficient amount of it.  Whenever we are dehydrated, our muscles become tense.  Anxiety also causes muscle tension, and dehydration causes anxiety.  These three things are very strongly connected, and hydration is the easiest of the three to treat in order to help break the cycle.

Exercise can also be very effective.  Whenever you exercise, you are stretching your muscles and alleviating excess tension.  Exercise also gets rid of stress and produces natural mood improving hormones.  The link between exercise and anxiety relief has been well proven, and it is generally a good idea to get some exercise every day.

Progressive muscle relaxation can be a simple way to relieve muscle tension when you are at work or in bed.  In order to do this, simply start at your toes, tightening the muscles while you slowly count to five and then relaxing them.  Next, move to the muscles in your feet, then your calves, then your thighs, and so on, until you make it all the way to your head.  When you have tensed and relaxed each muscle group, you will likely feel a great deal more relaxed.

Last, consider meditation or yoga as a means of easing muscle tension.  Both of these practices are designed to help you let go of excess stress and tension, both in your mind and your body.  Learning these practices can also be incredibly helpful at combating other symptoms of anxiety and panic.

Stopping or Easing Fatigue

Fatigue can be a particularly troublesome symptom for people with anxiety and panic disorders for a number of reasons.  When you are fatigued, it can be harder to concentrate on tasks at work, school or home.  Fatigue can make driving and operating machinery dangerous and it can also make you considerably more vulnerable to panic attacks.  But what can you do to stop it?  There are actually a number of things that can help anxiety sufferers reduce fatigue.

One thing that can help stop fatigue is to cut any stimulants out of your diet.  While caffeine may provide the sensation of being more awake and alert, it also causes significant crashing over the course of the day, creating a great deal of fatigue.  Eliminating caffeine and nicotine can help prevent symptoms of fatigue.  Cutting alcohol out of your diet can also be very effective, as your body consumes a great deal of resources trying to eliminate the toxin from your system, leading to increased fatigue that can last for days.

In addition to cutting certain things out of your diet, you will find that adding certain things to your diet can be helpful as well.  B Vitamins are excellent at helping to improve energy levels in a safe way.  Gingko Biloba is excellent for memory and concentration, and Omega 3 fish oils can also help to greatly improve focus and concentration.

Another effective means of combating fatigue is to exercise.  Vigorous exercise such as running or using an exercise bike will increase blood flow and circulation, helping to improve energy and boost your metabolism.  It can also ease muscle tension and help get rid of excess hormones that can cause anxiety and other mood problems.  This will help keep your body going throughout the day and will also make it easier for you to get a good night’s sleep, which is another essential part of fighting fatigue.

Using techniques to help improve sleep is also important.  As mentioned elsewhere in this book, try to keep a regular sleep schedule so that your body gets more rest.  Eliminate unnecessary distractions to help make your sleep more beneficial.  Make certain that your room is used only for sleep, as using it to surf the web, watch television, or perform other tasks can take away your mental image of your bedroom as a place of peace and respite.  If you are feeling overly anxious or overwhelmed by emotion, consider going into another room or walking around for a moment.  You want to associate your bedroom only with sleep and relaxation, and when you can do this it can help make sleeping much easier and more restful, which can have great benefit on your anxiety symptoms.

Last, if your fatigue is caused by stress and worry, set aside fifteen to thirty minutes each day to allow yourself to focus on the things that cause these symptoms.  Spend this time each day worrying, fretting, or thinking about the things that cause you concern and forget about them for the rest of the day.  This can take a bit of work and mindfulness, but it can be done.  If you experience a stressful or worrisome thought outside of this thirty-minute period, simply acknowledge it and let it go.  Don’t give these thoughts any merit until it is time to think about them, and when the thirty minutes is over, move on to something else.

Summary

Anxiety can produce a wide variety of symptoms that, when individually managed, can make living with anxiety or panic disorders much more manageable.  Learning how to deal with individual symptoms can take some practice, but you will find that it can be very helpful.  By working to treat or eliminate symptoms one by one, you can help to create a chain reaction that reduces other symptoms as well.  When you experience fewer symptoms, anxiety becomes more manageable and treatment can be more effective.