Know your triggers and symptoms

    Know your triggers for panic attacks and anxiety. As well as know your symptoms when a panic is coming on.  A panic attack is a sudden episode of intense fear or anxiety and physical symptoms, based on a perceived threat rather than imminent danger. Some common symptoms that may occur when a panic attack is coming are a racing heartbeat, shortness of breath, dizziness, trembling, and muscle tension. Panic attacks occur frequently and unexpectedly and are often not related to any external threat. For me, my most common symptoms are uncontrollable shaking and nausea. Those are my starting symptoms and then I have a hard time breathing and I get really hot. I also am probably crying by then and sometimes I will have chest pain. Normally I just wait out the panic attack until I calm down. I wrote a post solely on panic attacks that has more information.

The next time you feel a panic attack coming on, try and follow these steps:

1. Stay where you are, if possible.

2. Breathe slowly and deeply.

3. Remind yourself that the attack will pass.

4. Focus on positive, peaceful, and relaxing images.

5. Remember it's not life threatening.

Everyone is different so you may have different triggers for your anxiety than others. Triggers can include many different things and elements. Some common triggers are habits, life events, and various stressors that feel out of your control. Triggers are also when you are exhausted and haven't gotten much sleep or there is a build-up of stress, like I said, so many different things could be a trigger, it just depends on the person and their experiences.  What happens when you get triggered? Do your hands shake uncontrollably? Do you feel nauseous? There are also many different types of signs that your anxiety has been triggered. Such as your hands begin to shake or you get a heavy feeling in your chest, it could be different for everyone. These symptoms are normally different from a panic attack because panic attack symptoms are more intense than general anxiety.  If you don't know your triggers, you can work with a therapist to help find them. Some people, like me, have no triggers, and sometimes the anxiety comes out of nowhere. 

It is important to know and figure out what your triggers and symptoms are so you can prepare and know what to do when it happens!