Anxiety attacks are perhaps the worst thing someone can ever experience. I mean, you're just sitting there, minding your own business and enjoying your day. Then, from nowhere...BAM! Your heart starts burning and everything starts shaking. It hurts to breathe; you start to feel lightheaded and nauseous. The worst part of it all is that you have no idea what the hell is going on. You don't have a single clue as to why the anxiety attack is happening. If you knew why it was happening, then that would be a panic attack, which is close to the same thing, but a whole different discussion.
Sometimes these attacks are minor and usually dissipate, but every so often you get one that just doesn't want to quit. It may take longer to go away. The pain is more intense; this can be pretty nerve wracking and that only increases the attack. Part of the reason I ended up in the hospital recently was because I was having an anxiety attack, but because I had not had one for a long time, the pain in my chest and numbness in my arm made me think I was having a heart attack.
Now I'm not here to give my account as to what I went through and add to the fears that one may have about these attacks. I'm here to relate my experience in the hopes of shedding light on what one can do to prevent an anxiety attack from escalating to the point where you find yourself being carted into an ambulance. First and foremost I want to make this clear: We all are going to have anxiety attacks, whether small or severe, at one point or another in our lives. If you made it this far in life and have had the fortune of not having, one consider yourself lucky. I mean really, you got through high school and didn't have a single anxiety attack? That's impressive.
The single most important thing for you to do, and echoing Aaron Rodgers on this one (shout-out to the Packers fan base), you just need to RELAX. Remember anxiety attacks happen when you don't know why and trying to figure it out will just add to the pain and stress of the situation. The best thing you can do is get to some place with minimal noise (preferably your bedroom) and just stay calm. Lie down in bed and simply relax. It won't happen instantaneously, but the pain will soon subside and eventually go away.
If you find yourself at a social gathering and begin to experience this, it's never a bad idea to have a friend walk you back home. This leads me to my next important point: there is no need to be afraid or hesitant to tell a friend that something isn't right. More often than not, they will actually identify what's going on before you do (primarily because their heart and mind aren't racing). Had it not been for the two young ladies sitting with me at the time, my night would have been a long and painful one. But because I was able to tell them what I was experiencing, they called for help and stayed with me until the EMTs arrived. Trust me: If they are your friends, they will not hesitate to help.
It may not be fun, but it never hurts to go see a counselor and talk to them about what happened. For all you know, it could have been a fluke, some kind of freak incident where an attack just crept up on you. Or there could be some underlying stress that is lurking in the back of your mind that even you don't...well...realize that's there.
I may have misspoken before because this is the most important thing to remember about anxiety: You are not alone in this. We all experience it to some extent and we all can help each other recover when it knocks us down.
