Panic attacks are horrible! Our normal reaction to them is to "buck-up" and fight them, which is exactly the wrong thing to do.

I started having panic attacks in 1979. I was in the wrong job, working for very bad people.

The attacks eventually became so debilitating I couldn't leave my home consistently. Luckily, I found a series of self help books by Dr. Claire Weekes. I had a psychology background from college that allowed me to understand behavior modification. Within days I had reversed the downward spiral and one year later I was giving public speeches to hundreds of people. I had been a nationally known salesperson before the attacks started and became a top sales person again. Just this last week I was again given national recognition as one of the best (at 68),

The mantra I follow is "Face_Accept_Float_Let Time Pass."

In my case the panic attacks were adrenaline attacking my frayed nerves. When the attacks would hit I would avoid the "flee or fight" battle and the self questioning. I knew it was merely internal chemicals. By FACING the reality I soon found a way to ACCEPT the attacks for what they were. I then would FLOAT (imagine myself in a happy, carefree place from my youth - in my case lying on my back on a small haystack looking at the clouds) and by LETTING TIME PASS I would allow the adrenaline to work its way through my body, instead of fighting the process. Adrenaline is normal. It becomes an "attack" when we react badly to it causing more adrenaline to attack our frayed nerves and entering into a panic attack spiral. Once you break the spiral your nerves become less frayed and less susceptible to misreading/misusing the adrenaline.

Over the years I've given copies of those books to many people and nearly all have benefited greatly. Of course, avoiding alcohol and drugs, getting enough sleep, proper diet, and frequent exercise also helps.

Everyone is different. But, please understand that about 18% of the adult population of the United States has an anxiety disorder.

In my case it was easily fixed.

I hope this helps you.

By the way - I was well on the way to completely healed when I was fired by those wrong people. Within two weeks I was working at a job that opened hundreds of doors for me during my career.

Jill