what to do
hi i have a question is there always a trigger for anxiety or can it just happen out of nowhere
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Hey @Betty123 welcome to the forums! I'm sorry you've been having panic attacks that sounds really hard 😞
I'm kind of tempted to say there's always a cause for anxiety. Even if it's anxiety about anxiety! (Our brains can be so meta lol). And like even we can be anxious in response to physical sensations we notice (e.g. if we notice our heart racing randomly this can increase anxiety making the physical sensations of anxiety worse and it goes in a loop). You said your panic attacks usually happen in the morning beside the lockers? Why do you think this is the case? It could be helpful to also reflect on if youre feeling anxious about anything more generally as well? Also if your body is getting those basic needs met (like sleep, eating, exercise, even getting some sunlight) this can influence anxiety levels I think
Re controlling panic attacks I feel like trying to control them could make things worse because I imagine it would create more anxiety? I'm not sure, what do you think? Perhaps mindfully observing the panic as it comes up and riding out the wave in a non judgemental way might be helpful? It seems counterintuitive to let go of that need to control especially when we just want the anxiety to stop... Otherwise if the panic is coming up because of some underlying anxieties about other issues it might be helpful to talk about these with your counsellor?
If you need some resources for self help with anxiety and panic I'm happy to link some? Let me know if you think this would be helpful 🙂
well I have some news they happen at school in the morning now not just by the lockers and also they happen at night when i am at home and they aren't exactly fun to deal with I am not sure what to do but i am trying mediation and excise and even writing it down in diary and seeing any changes but the one thing i want is it to stop it really hurts and it doesn't just scare me it scares my friends as well and they are pretending that it doesn't but i look through their fake faces and I know it scares them because they are trying to help me but they really don't know what to do ? any ideas?
Hey @Betty123, I just want to clarify something from your post. Did you say that you had news from this morning? Did this news set off another panic attack? Would you like to share the news, if I understood that correctly? Panic attacks and anxiety are definitely not fun to deal with at all. It's great that you have found ways to try and help track changes within yourself and see what may trigger these episodes. Meditation, exercise and writing in a diary are positive tools to have in your tool kit, which will help your self-care and mental health.
It sounds like your friends want to be supportive of you and they might be scared because they are afraid of something happening to you, that might have a negative outcome. It sounds like you understand this and want to make their lives a little easier. Do you know what helps you calm down from your panic attacks. In the past what has helped me deal with friends who have suffered from these attacks is having a conversation with them before they have an attack and follow their instructions while they are having an attack. Some friends have wanted comfort and some have wanted their own space. This gave me more of an idea as to how to help a particular friend. Are you aware of what works best for you? Have you done some research as to what might work well for you? I dare say that your friends will gain more confidence as time goes on and will know how to help you more after each experience.
Hi @Betty123
Often anxiety can have a trigger, but occasionally it does just come up out of the blue.
Often for me if I feel anxious out of apparently nowhere it's because I've spent the last few days being worried about something else. Other times there is a trigger, but it's not obvious what it is.
Have you noticed any patterns when you feel anxious?
Hey @Betty123
This is a really good question, I hope you don't mind I have moved this to another part of the forum where hopefully more community members will see it and be able to give more support ❤️
Sometimes anxiety can certainly seem to come out of absolutely nowhere and really take us by surprise - but it sometimes also happens more often when we're feeling particularly stressed or exhausted or worried about something.
@Tiny_leaf also mentioned patterns which can certainly be helpful in determining when anxiety might arise and allow us to prepare for it.
You said that you have noticed feeling anxiety often in the morning by the lockers, is there anything you can think of that might be causing you to feel anxious in this place and time? Maybe something like school stress or worries about classmates?
I wanted to share some content here as well, this piece is about what anxiety is generally, and this one is about how to get help for anxiety is you want to check them out 🥰
wow that has really helped and that is okay that you have moved my question around i don't mind i really appcaite that i can connect with others that go through the same thing as me and people who want to help so thanks you so munch Hannah_RO
@Betty123 that's an intresting pattern...
Is there anything around the lockers that makes you uncomfortable?
What sort of things do you think about while you're there?
Like @Lost_Space_Explorer5 said, there's not much you can do to control the anxiety itself, but one thing that you can control is your breathing, and a lot of people find that can really reduce their anxiety. Have you ever heard of any breathing exercises?
is there any chance of controlling panic attacks or is it impossible
Hi @Betty123,
Thanks again for reaching out, you’ve got some really great questions about anxiety.
I am going to reflect what Hannah and @Tiny_leaf have said and reinforce that with approaching anxiety, it has a lot to do with noticing patterns and being aware of our body and our feelings. With some people they can find it useful to notice the physical sensations of anxiety (e.g sweaty palms, increased pulse) then take action to slow things down, do some breathing or take a walk to prevent a potential panic attack. For others, it could be noticing patterns or triggers and working through those. For example, if I experienced panic attacks in large crowded spaces I might work with a counsellor or psychologist to help me work through why I feel that way and how I can get comfortable with those spaces overtime.
So, there are a lot of ways to approach our anxiety and how to address it. A good starting point might be mindfulness (you can find a great article of ours on it here). But if you are looking for more specifics, I think a good place to start might be speaking to the school counsellor about how you are feeling and see if they are able to help.
How does that all sit with you? 😊
