Relating to your Anxiety or Panic Attacks · Expert Coach Certification

Relating to your Anxiety or Panic Attacks

Do you have clients who experience anxiety or panic attacks?

Panic attacks and anxiety often intensify and get reinforced when you ‘react’ fearfully through a fight/flight reaction to stress related body sensations and overwhelming feelings, or symptoms of anxiety – E.g. - Racing heart, sweaty palms, jelly legs, shakiness, heat, shallow breathing, racing thoughts, tense tummy or chest. Often the symptoms of panic and anxiety will reduce in intensity once the fight/flight reaction to stress related symptoms is broken and you are no longer fighting them.

First order of business - Notice and become mindful – Ask yourself, how do I know anxiety is here? What are the body sensations, feelings, body posture, thoughts, images in my mind and attention patterns that go with anxiety.

Relationship to anxiety – Notice what meaning and judgments you make about your anxiety sensations and emotional distress in the first place? What kind of relationship do you have with your anxiety sensations and feelings of distress? Do you automatically - Fight the feelings; have catastrophic future focused fantasies or excessive worry and the ‘What if’s’; shame yourself and judge yourself for feeling the anxiety or distress? Notice the effect of your reaction to your original distress and anxiety symptoms – does it intensify it or lessen it? Remind yourself that your anxiety is here for a reason, and if you really listen to it, you will find out what it is trying to tell you.

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