I have experienced fear and panic attacks!
Even though I knew they were unreasonable I felt like I couldn’t control them. Do you feel the same? It’s not surprising as having a life changing event is a scary experience! In my case it was a heart attack, breast cancer and a ruptured Achilles tendon – all in the same 9 months.
Using NLP I am able to help you break the pattern that creates feelings of panic and being out of control. Hypnosis works with your unconscious mind bringing relaxation and calm, and changing the thoughts and images that cause your physical feelings of fear and panic. Indian Head Massage assists in reminding your body how it feels to be physically relaxed.
For me the fear of another heart attack was totally overwhelming and took over my life. At one point the only place I would eat out was the restaurant opposite my GP surgery.
Do you recognise any of these?
- Will I have another heart attack?
- How will I know if I have another heart attack?
- Don’t leave me on my own?
- Is it OK to go to sleep?
- Am I going to die?
- I can’t go out of the house?
- How will I ever work again?
- My life is over?
- Am I the only one that feels like this?
When you feel as though you’re under pressure, your blood pressure rises, your muscles tighten and your breathing accelerates. The physical symptoms are referred to as the “fight, flight or freeze” response. It is a survival response from prehistoric times when as a caveman/woman you had to decide whether to stand and fight the woolly mammoth that was chasing you, hide or just run away. It originates from the reptilian part of our brain, the oldest and deepest part that is all about survival and keeping you safe.
A panic attack is a severe attack of anxiety and fear which occurs suddenly, often without warning, and sometimes for no apparent reason. Various other symptoms then occur during a panic attack. These can include one or more of the following.
Have you experienced any of these?
- Palpitations or a thumping heart
- Sweating and trembling
- Hot flushes or chills
- Feeling short of breath, sometimes with choking sensations
- Chest pains
- Feeling sick
- Feeling dizzy, or faint
- Fear of dying or going crazy
- Numbness or pins and needles
- Feelings of unreality, or being detached from yourself
The physical symptoms that occur with panic attacks do not mean there is a physical problem with your heart, chest, etc. The symptoms mainly occur because of an ‘overdrive’ of nervous impulses from your brain to various parts of your body during a panic attack.
If during a panic attack an outside threat cannot be found, your mind turns inwards and begins to contemplate the possible illnesses your body or mind could be suffering from. These can range from it might have been “something you ate at lunch”, to “the possibility of an oncoming cardiac arrest”.
Fear of panic
Panic attacks are not threatening or dangerous; they are an awareness of a series of heightened bodily sensations. The key difference between someone who is cured of panic attacks and those that are not is really very simple. They are not afraid of panic attacks. They see the bodily sensations as sensations and not something to overreact to. You can achieve this, I did.
