I'm a student of psychology, but I have never seen such a person who explain things in such a beautiful way. God bless you.

I had a panic attack in a movie theater and since then I have difficulty going, there you go, avoiding "dangerous" spaces. a couple of years later, I had a strong anxiety attack in a supermarket but I immediately thought to myself "no way, this is where I buy food" I took a few deep breaths and managed to get over that feeling. this way of thinking has helped me in other anxious situations

I used to have panic attacks. Once I figured out what was happening, i went to a therapist. She said: - Don't work so hard. - Switch to decaf. - Exercise every day. - Try to get a good night's sleep every night. I haven't had a panic attack since. That was 13 years ago.

“Avoidance feeds anxiety in the long term” I found that very insightful, thank you for sharing. Never thought of it that way before.

Once had a panic attack that lasted for three and a half days. I’d panic until I passed out, then wake and repeat. I was screaming and crying non-stop toward the end of it, and I was certain that I had gone crazy b/c all my thoughts were dark, violent and hopeless. Luckily, I had people to take me to a safe place for evaluation and care. Turns out I had a psychotic break and needed therapy and some light medication. It’s been two years and I’m on the same meds - zoloft and a bridge drug called buspar - and am continuing therapy on an as-needed schedule - about every two months. Many friends and doctors saved my life, and I’m happy. Please get professional help if you need it.

It took me a trip to a cardiologist, a CT scan, Echogram to confirm I was suffering anxiety and not a heart problem! Breathing, pausing and writing has helped. Awareness is half the battle, the rest is self regulation. Love your content!

I am veteran that was wounded in war. Here are some ways I have learned to handle these situations: 1) stop active (for example pull over at a safe location when I am driving and find a spot in the store to stand for a moment). I don’t remove myself from something causing the anxiety, as a last resort I will, but I will try to stay put at safe location. Reason for this, is i don’t want my anxiety to dictate my life and I don’t want to train myself to run away when I am scared. You might not be ready for that and that’s okay…You might need to go slower and start with imagining the crowd or the thing that makes you anxious. Instead I will slow down and ease into it, Don’t be ashamed of feeling anxious!!! Let me say that again Don’t be ashamed of feeling anxious! Everyone’s situation regarding it might differ but it’s a normal human feeling and response to stress. After, stopping activity in a safe place. I will count three deep breaths I am able to hear. I will imagine something that used to relax me. For me it’s waves rolling onto a beach. I live near a beach so it works. I will watch the waves and try to match my breaths. I will then when I am ready slowly open my eyes and my attention to what’s happening around me. I will continue to breath until the feeling subsides. Sometimes I will close my hands in a fist and slowly open it. Trying to match my breaths with the slow opening of my hands. Some of my brothers and sisters count down while they breath. Telling themselves in their mind in a kind voice I am safe, I am relaxed, I am calm…over and over. I don’t use physical comfort during these events, reason is I want to learn how to calm myself and not depend upon others always. I will tell people that ask straight out, I am feeling a little anxious and taking a moment. I will be alright, thank you for your concern. It’s normal to feel this way, and you can live a good life with proper care. You can even overcome it completely. Never give up on yourselves, you all deserve a good life!!

The tip about not avoiding really helped me. I had a bad panic attack last time I was at a concert and it was awful, thinking about being in that scenario again makes me start to panic already, but my parents booked a concert of my favourite band for next month as a present and I really want to go so I’m gonna try push through ❤ Update: I went and I’m so glad I did, it was really fun and I didn’t have a panic attack. Very happy I didn’t let the panic attacks make me miss it

I watched this yesterday and today I had the worst panic attack I have probably ever had. But I remembered this and realized it was a panic attack not a meltdown I was able to adjust my coping mechanisms and let my family know what was happening so they also started to calm down. Thank you for helping me through this.

Honestly, having a panic attack is one of the scariest things I’ve ever been through, even though they clearly aren’t as severe as some other people’s panic attacks, but I resonate with people with anxiety and panic attacks❤ Stay strong and drink some water ❤

I had a very severe episode of anxiety triggered by a bad panic attack when I went travelling with my father and brother last fall. I ended up laying in a hotel room for two days watching the great British bake-off trying to calm myself. On day one after I had been shaking and crying muttering to my dad that I felt like I was dying, he picked up fellowship of the rings and started reading as he held me. He has always been wonderful at handling my anxiety and calming me down. And even though I was quite exhausted the rest of the trip, it will be memories I will always treasure, because I got to feel like a little girl again as my dad read to me

The “don’t avoid the thing causing a panic attack (so long as it’s safe)” advice is really good. I got into a really bad car accident recently, and my roommate have me driving the next day so that I wouldn’t keep being afraid of being behind the wheel. Such an underrated piece of advice.

This is so helpful, I have panic attacks a lot, and it really throws an ax throw one’s life.

I started experiencing panick attacks in uni. I get them here and sometimes even when I'm trying to sleep. My breathing gets heavy, my heart pounds and I feel an impending doom like I'm going to die. However as my brother struggled with anxiety he taught me all about it being natural because adrenaline and fight or flight. So now even though it feels bad I let it ride through and the panic attack is over within a few seconds.

I could remember several years ago, I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Was actually diagnosed with BPD. Not until my husband recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 8 years totally clean. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.

When you are having a panic attack, your body is actually working really well. You are safe. Wow. This is the single, most helpful, comforting and healing information I have ever come across. Thank you so much for this. When the next attack comes on, I will be using this mindset to comfort and encourage myself! Much appreciation.

One thing which helps me a lot is being able to identify thoughts which I have just before my anxiety spirals and counteract it with a more positive thought. For example, when I start to notice myself feeling anxious or panicked I often have the thought 'what if I can't cope with this'. In the past that thought used to make me spiral into a full blown panic attack, now when I get that thought I think to myself 'what if I can cope with this' and sometimes that's enough to calm me down.

I've had panic attacks and they're the worst thing I've ever experienced. Sometimes I knew what was causing it and other times I didn't. However they almost always started with a fluttering feeling in my chest followed by my heart skipping beats. I know now that your heart skipping beats is rarely a serious thing and is pretty common. They happen all the time and you're usually not even aware of it. It's just the hyper awareness caused by the panic attack that causes you to notice it. Since I became aware of this I haven't had another one.

Psychedelics are just an exceptional mental health breakthrough. It's quite fascinating how effective they are against depression and anxiety. Saved my life.

Thank you, I suffered pretty badly with ongoing panic attacks due to family trauma, I am doing better now however I tend to avoid a lot of scenarios for fear they will cause a panic attack or an unwanted feeling. Of course I have realised that this only exacerbates it, so I am going to try and challenge myself in a gentle way to go through situations that caused me to feel anxious.

I have both anxiety and panic attacks. I usually don’t know why, but sometimes it’s pretty clear why I’m getting them. I started going to therapy right away when they both started getting bad af though. My psychologist diagnosed me with PTSD, and thinks that’s the reason, but I’ve had anxiety attacks since before any of the things leading to the PTSD happened, so now we’re checking out what my other problems can be for the 5th time in a few months, like getting fully diagnosed again

Love this video because I'm tired of people feeling anxious about a job interview or something and calling it a panic attack. There is a stark difference between anxiety and panic for me. Panic for me is total depersonalization and loss of a sense of self or a sense of my true circumstances. They come in a spectrum though; some are small and quick and I have to snap myself out of it, and some are sudden feelings of cosmic horror and death that grip me so intensely that I become physically incapable of helping myself. The worst of them can leave me bedridden. I just recently went through one caused by a change in hormones and medication that left me catatonic for a whole day. The only method I've had to tackling them is just understanding them. Knowing it's just a feeling that is temporary and is often caused by many factors that are out of my control and some that are within my control. Even though they still happen, they happen far less and I know what to do about it and how to ask for help.

I've had panic attacks from a young age, originally because of a severe water phobia that I've had since around 10. But as I got older and struggled with anxiety and perfectionism due to abuse, I began developing them more often. I always called them an "anxiety attack" because I felt like I didn't have a "real" anxiety disorder and didn't want to be disrespectful to my friend who has a legitimate panic attack disorder (hers come without specific triggers). This video was so educational, thank you.

My stepdaughter is in competitive cheer and I can only be at an event for about two hours before the anxiety becomes panic. The huge amounts of energy, loud music, and personality types tend to create a hyper vigilance in me, which leads to a sense that I have to remove myself from the setting. It has put huge strain on my relationship with my stepdaughter because she doesn’t feel supported. I will start with the breathing when I feel the anxiety growing to see if it helps. Thank you for this advice!

I've let anxiety control my life for about 5 years. I've had countless tests done, heart ones, brain ones, and the only thing they can come up with is 2 autoimmune diseases (nothing related to the heart or brain though). I still have such bad health anxiety, constantly thinking I'm dying and I avoid everything and everyone. :(

Thank you for this. I wrote it all down. Anxiety can be crippling.

I have anxiety attacks quite often, and mostly because I question reality. When I do have that anxiety, I feel detached from my own body/or reality, and those feelings just make the anxiety attack worse. I’ll feel light headed and such and begin to cry, tremble, and sweat. I do have ways to deal with my anxiety attacks though, they are strange but they work. Holding a pack of ice, squeezing a stress toy (someone’s hand does work too), reminding myself that it’s all in my head, or eating something sweet. My anxiety attacks don’t last long, they can happen for a few minutes at most, but I will almost always feel derealized or depersonalized.

Thank you so much for all the tips you give us! I guess everyone is different but I list things that have worked for me : - practising patience. For example, I am waiting in a line at the supermarket and I feel really uncomfortable and anxious as it seems it is taking so long so I tell myself : you have to be patient and this shall pass. - recognising that 99 % of my fears never actually happen in real life and that nothing (outside of emergency situations) is really worth worrying about. I try to learn to calm down my fears. - getting used to feel uncomfortable feelings without trying to make stories about it - talking to someone even asking for stupid stuff just so I feel less isolated and distracted from the fear You might want to check whether you are a highly sensitive person (which I am) because for us bright lights, noise etc. give us so much stimuli to our brain that it stress us more than the average person! Let's be safe and let's hope for the best in life!

I've struggled with anxiety since the age of 9. Diagnosed at 13 but not medicated til age 25. The most helpful thing was seeking help. I could not manage alone. Writing helps me so much. To this day my anxiety is detrimental but it has become such a common term that people don't understand between the state of anxiety which everyone has and a panic disorder. Thank you for sharing on this topic.

It’s my first time seeing someone understand me so well. It’s like you talking about me, thank you for this.

I’ve suffered from anxiety my whole life. I finally got on medication the summer before freshman year in high school. It was absolutely a strange feeling after I took the medicine because I had NO IDEA what calm felt like. I looked at my mom and I said to her, “I feel...weird.” And she just was in shock and realized that I’ve never felt calmness before. It was very emotional and so incredible to feel calm. I think we both cried that day. Now my struggle is being home alone and away from my mom. I go into a state of panic and the only thing that tends to help is having the radio on all the time and breathing.

It’s so nice to hear this professionally explained, thank you so much for taking the time to make this🙂

Hello, Dr. Julie! 💖 First of all, I’m so grateful for your videos. I can feel that you are a very empathic psychologist. I love your videos on Instagram. They are very helpful, to the point, healing and creative. I love how you use different things as analogy to helps us visualize our problems. I’m so happy that you’re beginning to upload videos on UKposts. Here I can understand more deeply about a topic, in this case panic attack. I would like to watch more videos like this, especially about different and useful techniques to cope with a panic attack (self-soothing tips). I’m suffering from panic attacks due to a health trauma (hypoglycaemia, hypotension, palpitations) last year. Since then I’ve been at home recovering. Now I’ve noticed that when I go outside or have a social event, I get anxious, have tachycardia, and I return home very tired. I’m trying to not to avoid it, but still it’s very difficult for me to cope. I hope to learn how to slowly go outside of my home as I used to do before getting really sick. Thank you so much for your help, Michelle

This was so helpful to me! I struggle with panic attacks and they can get to the point there I want to craw away and die in a corner. I often feel alone and malfunctioning when it occurs but you explaining this is my body working to protect me gave me a good reminder. I am not broken.

This was so helpful! I recently discovered my journey with anxiety and am excited to push through this battle.

I love watching your videos since I have struggled with both anxiety and depression. Anxiety nowadays being the most prominent one at the moment, and this is extremely helpful especially since in the past I have had both anxiety attacks and panic attacks in the past and I’ve even had 2 anxiety attacks in school before as I am only 14 and don’t like talking to people about my mental health struggles unless I trust them a lot which takes a while for me to do and even then I normally don’t tell them in person!

This is very accurate. I developed severe or chronic panic disorder back in 2017. I had just lost my job, insurance everything and had to move and I was unable to seek any medical help, but it was very bad. Like bad-bad, baaad bad bad. I would have catastrophic panic attacks on the hour every hour to the point I was bed-ridden and would sleep for upwards of 12 hours a night. I developed severe agoraphobia and stayed home for almost 2 years after that, only going out for the bare minimum. When i got working again, work was hard. I would even out bathroom breaks or hide during moments all the time because I felt like my body forgot how to breathe. I felt like my heart had a problem and that it would stop beating at any moment. I would shake constantly, i would feel faint constantly, i lost 35 pounds, i did a ton of preparation-for-death stuff like leaving notes and taking care of things because I genuinely felt i would die. I did go to the ER a bunch during this period, racking up about 4k in debt to hospitals for not having insurance, and it was the worst part of my entire life. I also lost a lot of important relationships. What wound up happening was that I learned to meditate, I learned to think more scientifically about things and even tho it took about 4 years, I became best friends with fear (if that makes sense). I never healed back up 100%, but I healed up close to it. My trigger back then was an undiagnosed hiatal hernia, which gave me sudden feelings of pressure in my chest and as the muscles in my diaphram would occassionally twitch or spasm, I was convinced it was my heart skipping beats. I did learn about the hernia years later, but because of that, everything else unfolded the way it did.

Thank you so much for explaining this 🙌🏻 Anxiety attacks and panic attacks are incredibly different in general and will be also amongst people!

As someone who has struggled with both anxiety and panock attacks my whole life. I can 100% agree with everything you said. I always forget that delayed outbreath - calms! Also, your use of the marker and paper, plus the fact that your handwriting is aesthetically pleasing, is super helpful in remembering the information. Thank you for your content!! ❤

I have extremely severe anxiety that is quite literally debilitating, it holds me back from doing so so so many things and causes me to be at a 5 or a 6 anxiety level wise constantly, and thank you for actually differentiating panic and anxiety attacks :) on a normal day I’m having atleast one anxiety attack per day and or a mini one, and mini panic attacks once a week or more and for someone like me, it’s very very important to know what the difference is and this actually helped! Thank you!

I’ve experienced panic attacks for more than 15 years and this is the most helpful explanation and advice I’ve ever heard (and I’ve seen therapists before). Thank you ❤️

As someone who has both anxiety and panic attacks frequently, this was very useful ! When I get panic attacks or anxiety attacks, it’s usually because of my fears/phobias, or when I’m in a situation that I recognize as dangerous, but with time I’m getting better at handling them, so yayy Thank you for this video !

I've had anxiety for years and didn't know I was having panic attacks until today. I always used the term "anxiety attack" to describe them because my symptoms didn't fit the stereotypical ones (i.e. chest pain, hyperventilating). Thanks for sharing this! While I'm generally pretty good at managing my symptoms and preventing panic attacks, it's still really beneficial to make sure that I am using the right terms to better communicate my experience, particularly with health professionals! :)

I just stumbled upon your channel and omg I have been needing this channel. I see a therapist and he is great but my depression, anxiety and PTSD is awful and hearing these explanations and supportive messages it hits in a good way. So Thanks!

The not avoiding has helped me the most. One simple statement was more helpful than years of talking about what bothered me. Thank you Dr.

Those anxiety & panic attack's are scary. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!. This is a huge eye and mind opener for me. Everything you said is exactly what I have been feeling. I had been to a doctor and called an ambulance but none even suggested a panic attack so all along I've just self diagnosed myself and not want to tell anyone because they wouldn't understand but this video has really helped.

I was diagnosed with anxiety years ago, and experience 8 out of the 12 symptoms, some more often than others. I didn't know about all of them until seeing this, but there was a period, not too long ago, where I literally thought I had heart problems due to almost constant palpitations and chest pain. I got checked out, was told I was healthy, and ever since I've been out of the environment I was in at the time, I haven't felt those symptoms anymore. This video puts a lot into perspective. Thank you so much! I just subbed. :)

I found this video when I was feeling extremely anxious and decided to search for anything that might help me relax a little. After finishing the video, I felt a lot calmer and at peace with myself. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

The way you explain and know exactly how I’m feeling and what I am doing in words puts me at ease, it helps me relieve myself, knowing that someone understands me

I had those for years when I was younger. Dr's dismissed it as nothing. No one would listen. They didn't care about my suffering. I learned to stop talking about my suffering.

When I am experiencing this. I can now take a step back, I stop with what I am doing, I recognize what is happening in my head. I am talking to myself comforting; say that I am safe, it is okay, nothing can happen, I know this feeling. Then I let the feeling be in my body, don’t resist it but let it be there. This is what helps me a lot. It has cost me a lot of practise and time, but the more often I do this, the better I can handle this. For me it is al about accepting, let it be, welcome it, don’t fight it, and be kind to yourself when you are experiencing this. Know it will be better ❤

Thankyou so much for the information you share in your book which I've almost finished reading. I've found it useful as a go to after all the trials and tribulations of the last few years including the loss of my father. I've only discovered your UKposts today and I can only hope that it gives my mother the tools she needs herself to help tackle her grievance process ❤

Thank you so much! For the past few months I’ve been experiencing a lot of anxiety which is new to me and a couple of “attacks”. I had no tools to deal with them or any information on what they were. Thanks to this video I now know that they were full blown panic attacks. I started to cry halfway thru the video because I finally found an answer. Now I just need to remember that I am not actually dying and that it will pass, it’s a temporary state.

This took me to when I had something happen in art class for me. I didn't really know what it was but I almost passed up going up the stairs to the office and my friend had to catch me and I fit like 6 of these symptoms so now I know for sure that it was a panic attack. Thank you so much for the information and explaining it in such and elaborate way. Keep up the good work.

Thank you for explaining everything so well! Very useful and educational video.

One of my best friends gets panic attacks, and this honestly helped me understand the meaning better. Wish you guys well, it must be AWFUL to get them, but you guys are strong

Thank you for validating my feelings about this.... It's hard for me when people say panic attack is the same anxiety attack. It's not!!! I know it only too well as my first panic attack happened when I was 6 years old...in church. I remember it as well as yesterday. It became so bad and as a child I had no way of communicating to my parents or teachers or friends what was happening. It got so bad so i ended up avoiding going places and never wanted to leave the house. It wasnt until I was 18 years old one of my counselors spoke to a psychologist and I could finally put a name to it. Unfortunately I did not connect the the dots about what may have started them until I was 34 years old. It's just very hard for me when people/Drs use the terms interchangeably...Thank you SO MUCH for this validation

I have been having anxiety attacks that all occur before work. I never used to have any anxiety issues until my son was diagnosed with major heart issues and spent a long time in the hospital and went through several surgeries and at one point I thought I might lose him. Before that happened I always felt like no matter what came at me or how difficult something was, I could always handle it. Once he was sick I felt this terrible feeling of helplessness because there was nothing I could do to help him other than being there for him. I felt like my fight instincts were going non stop but there was nothing i could fight. There was nothing i could personally do to protect him. Ever since then when work gets hard, I start feeling like I'm not good enough to handle it. It's like something broke inside of me and I don't know how to get my old self back. I throw up every morning before work and dread going. Once I'm there, I start relaxing into it and by the end of the day I'm OK. The waking up every night several times and not being able to sleep has got me so exhausted and throwing up all morning has caused really bad acid reflux. It feels like this anxiety is slowly killing me.

Thank you for explaining this!! I have a degree in psychology and although I'm no mental health professional, I feel like I should've known the difference between a panic attack and a so-called "anxiety attack." But thanks for clarifying that what I've been experiencing are panic attacks and that "anxiety attacks" are not a clinical category. I have cPTSD and OCD and I've been stuck in a horrible situation for the past three months where I've been having panic attacks almost constantly, night and day. In the past few years I've been through a lot of grief with the loss of multiple close family members, the loss of my childhood pets, two friends dying, and a rare disease diagnosis. After my dog had some abnormal lab results that were similar to abnormal lab results my older dog had before she died, I keep having intrusive thoughts about my dog being sick or dying. It's gotten so bad that I've called the vet multiple times per day even though he repeatedly told me he thinks my dog is healthy and just fine. I had panic attacks all the time as a kid, and they were related to PTSD. I used to have them about once a month as an adult, but lately I'm having 10 or more per day and they wake me up at night. I don't even know what's triggering them anymore. It seems like they trigger the intrusive thoughts and anxiety more than the anxiety and intrusive thoughts trigger them. Maybe it's a bad PTSD exacerbation. I'm not sure, but I've been in therapy and my psychiatrist has changed my medications so many times, and so far nothing is helping.

I used to think I was experiencing panic attacks until I actually started experiencing panic attacks lmao.

I appreciate this kind of video. When I have an actual panic attack, informative videos about what I'm going through, explaining what and why it's happening, like this, help calm me down, and it's very reassuring.

This video is great. It touches on everything I rember having to look through when i was researching anxiety and panic attacks. Including the exhaling. Longer exhales help calm because it slows your heart rate, and focusing on both breathing and counting creates a distraction away from the anxiety buildup. I remember having my first panic attack at work, and having difficulty breathing, which made it worse for a minute. But because it was retail, and i was on the clock, I had to force myself to calm down and get thru the rest of the day. Ive since quit that job and work elsewhere, and have learned what my bodys response is to high anxiety so i can calm myself, but I did have higher anxiety from then to the first few months of my new job before it settled down

Anxiety is a beast. I don’t often have panic attacks, probably because I’m used to high levels of anxiety. Just had a seven day event of high stress levels, anxiety to the max, a few ASD meltdowns and very little sleep. By day five the meltdown was bad and I was positive I was going to die. Since I was in hospital for a wisdom tooth extraction gone catastrophically wrong, I also couldn’t escape the stressor. I’m now unpacking the trauma of two surgeries to drain the two abscesses (I had to have the breathing tubes set up whilst I was conscious) and the whole staying overnight in hospital when I honestly believed I wouldn’t wake up if I slept. It’s going to take some time. But my mouth is healing nicely and my raging blood pressure is back to normal (it was terrible in Hotel Hell). Things are looking up.

YES THANK YOU. I had this discussion with a prof, and she said she'd TREAT THEM THE SAME. I personally feel like anxiety attacks should be recognized by the clinical community as a phenomenon of their own. It is obviously something that many people experience distinctly from panic attacks.

Thank you ❤ I hope these tips will help me next time when I have an anxiety / panic attack.. I developed a severe fear of getting migraines in public 😵‍💫 it’s not because of the headache, it’s because of the aura which is just like a stroke for me and comes so unpredictable 😢 I sometimes think out of nowhere I might get an migraine attack, but only minutes later I realize it’s just in my head (literally 😅) and it’s nothing to worry about. I can’t go out alone because of that 😢

Thanks for clarifying the differences. I reckon the panic attack is an anxiety attack but worse. I live with anxiety and depression, both from (I believe) C-PTSD. The things that have worked for me were running, yoga, 4-4-8/box-breathing (or any variation in which the exhales are longer than the inhales) and recently I've been having good results with acupuncture. Subscribed. Cheers!

Doctor, I really like your videos. The visualization and giving a fast good summary really helped me a lot. But other than that a detailed explanation is also help me learn this sort of things which i am interested in. I hope you also make long videos like this one.

This video was explained so clearly, I wish everything was this clear. I have had a few panic attacks in my life, and I have only counted those AS panic attacks because of just how intense they were (hyperventilating, shaking, palpitations, etc) and I've always counted everything else as simply an "anxiety attack". A lot of the time I get these really intense surges of anxiety, and I'm either frozen by them (so anxious I can't do anything else) or I get really fidgety and feel the need to move and do something. They will often happen in public too, which I've always just blamed on my GAD. I freak out and everything is just "too much". I also have ADHD and undiagnosed autism and have a *really* hard time recognizing my own feelings and body sensations, but this helped clear up exactly what a panic attack is, and I feel more confident calling those times I panicked an actual attack. I never really wanted to call them that because I felt like I wasn't allowed to based on others who had "real" ones.

I think you just clarified for me what actually happend to me last weekend. I had a music festival to go to, completely by myself on saturday, and two days earlier I started to feel palpatations, short breaths, chest pain, which ended up giving me a bit of insomnia. It took me a couple of hours to finally calm myself down and go to sleep. On the day of the music festival, since it was very crowded, there were a few times where I felt little palpatations or like I was going to faint, like I couldn't breath properly in the middle of the crowd. On the next day I was at home, felling better but later that night I was still feeling a bit weird with some of these simptoms and I decided to go to the hospital just to make sure I was okay, bc I was starting to think that I was having some sort of heart attack or something. The doctor examed me, I did a few exams and they all came totally fine. I've felt a bit of anxiety before in my life, but I think that was the first time I actually had a panic attack, because it scared me a little. Don't know how this video got recommended to me, but thank you anyway for helping me to understand.

I love your content Doc. So comprehensive and informative. I do notice that a few of the symptoms of a panic attack can point towards a heart attack for some people. On a personal note, I have nothing wrong with my heart, I don’t really feel anxious about things. I’m 48, almost 49 years old. In March last year I was taken to hospital with chest pain that began during rehab after my left leg was amputated. When I’d been in hospital for 2 days I had a cardiac arrest. Thankfully, this happened in front of medical staff. Nothing came back on the tests. My heart is fine! I’ll be starting my PhD in clinical psychology at Coventry Uni (it’s fully funded and salaried) next year. I hope to be instrumental in changing mental health services for the better nationally through improved delivery and medical engagement alongside peer support coupled with individually tailored modes of treatment. Thank you for being an inspiration xx ❤

Wonderfully explained. I have had panic attacks since childhood. My entire childhood I was taken from one medical professional to the next, based on the physical symptoms. No one even considered panic attacks. Mental health was not as talked about then, especially for children. For many years I practiced avoidance because I had no guidance, no tools. I'm now in a great place where I do mindfulness practices and journaling daily as well as other things that really keep me grounded.

Really good description of what it is like to have panic. So scary when it happens.

Thank you for all you do! ❤

I tried micro-dosing yesterday for the first time, and I had wonderful experience. I'm someone who suffers from chronic depression, and I was simply happy, not overly ecstatic, but genuinely happy and active with my friends and family. I was even excited to get out of bed this morning.

I suffered badly from panic attack at my 12th standard it's really scary and dr julie explained it really good because i was always feeling like i would die and I'm gonna have a heart attack thanks dr julie for spreading awareness❤

One of the useful things I learned through an online course of treatment was how to capture and challenge negative thoughts when I was feeling anxious. Until I learned to do that, I would avoid activities that I previously enjoyed and then end up feeling worse. Capturing and challenging negative thoughts helps to break the cycle.

I actually had more anxiety attacks than panic attacks and my phsycologistt could explain to me so I'm glad! Good video❤

Excellent video Dr. Julie as always!!✋👏🙌 Having experienced night time panic attacks for over 10 years, you described them perfectly. The fear of facing imminent death and that I was having a heart attack was the most traumatic part for me. Learning that these were panic attacks after googling the symptoms one night and then getting confirmation from my GP that I was not going to have a heart attack did bring me peace of mind. Thankfully after doing a lot of inner work, getting to the root cause of my panic attacks and removing the toxicity from my life I haven't had one in over nine months. What helped me when I was having them though was taking deep breaths, reminding myself that I was safe and that I was going to be ok, drinking a glass of cold water and going outside to feel the air on my face. Taking the natural supplement Valerian root on nights where I had a lot of anxiety during the day helped me as well. Knowing the signs of a panic attack helped me learn to stop them in their tracks before they became full blown, and hopefully they don't come back.☺️🙏💛

Getting diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, and ADHD, and getting medicated was a huge help. Also recognizing how my body feels when it has a panic attack, and taking deep breaths when i feel those somatic symptoms.

Thank you for laying out the facts and examples then sharing potential ways to address this.

I had panic attacks after going through consistent trauma. I never understood they were panic attacks. It took me so much therapy and talking about it to even identify my feelings which were mostly fear. Therefore, I thought for the first time that I must have anxiety. But the times where I would get the symptoms you mentioned were different and I couldn’t figure out what was happening to me. I feel like you really helped me to understand and identify what I am actually experiencing and it makes me feel better that it is only natural and safe that my body reacts this way due to my past trauma. Understanding and practicing healing helps to ease panic attacks and slow them faster. To eventually getting them little or not at all, which is what you want. Breathing really helps and guided meditation. Also physical activity like yoga helps to break the stress and tight grips throughout your body that you might not be aware of. Go outside in the sunshine and take a walk by yourself or with a friend, or someone you trust, in nature and use your senses to feel human again. We are all animals and we have forgotten our nature so it is important to get out and be our animal selves again. Thank you for this educational video. I feel like I am doing much better with this knowledge and awareness. Keep going in life, you all got this. Identifying the problem and utilizing different solutions is the best way. Take your time. 🌟 This too shall pass 🌟

I love this video, and particularly the tip you gave at the end about how avoidance leads back to anxiety in the long run. I do have to admit that it didn't clear up any confusion as to the difference between a panic attack vs. an anxiety attack, but I definitely did learn some valuable lessons here! Thank you! (P.S. Sorry to sound pedantic, but I did notice a misspelling in the word "palpitations" as "palpatations." 😅 Just wanted to let you know for further videos or information! :))

I was struggling to describe what I experience to others. Knowing they are panic attacks helps me identify and learn to stay grounded. I only have panic attacks when I'm around my sister who traumatized me. This makes sense thank you!

i have already bought your book..and this is the best..it is one of the best decisions I have made in buying books I guess... It is really helping me a lot, specifically in some certain situations it works like a tonic for me. Thank you so much, Doctor.

I thought I was fucking crazy "I have anxiety about having anxiety" It's the stupidest thing I have ever heard But it absolutely obliterated my life I wanted everyone to get away from me because I could never have peace, I deeply DEEPLY craved solitude to the point where I don't even consider being alone in my own house enough space It changed the way I approached everything How I treated friends, how I treated family, how I treated myself. Don't even ask me about relationships I was either only angry and resentful of the peace everyone else seemed to blissfully enjoy, while I couldn't have a moment of quiet in my head Or I was detached from everyone and everything. Completely cut myself off with depersonalization/derealization To the point where I didn't feel natural joy and forgot how it felt I just stare at the screen and even though I completely knew I found something funny I would barely make a sound After a while, (I guess because I don't remember a time before this) I got so used to being constantly tense and buzzed out from my anxiety that it was just my new normal. But then I would get moments, where enough things were ok enough or I was just too exhausted to be anxious that I would be clear, where I could actually take a breath and it would almost be so overwhelming that I would feel like I could cry because I knew it wasn't going to last I even ended up enjoying being sad, because when I was sad I wasn't anxious, it was like a little vacation I was so young when it all started and no one knew better to help me or tell me what was happening inside and as time went on I became more and more embarrassed and ashamed of how I felt that I started to hate myself so much for being the way I am, that I had no self confidence or self belief at all. Even little things that I knew how to do, I would make mistakes on and then I would doubt myself to the point where not only was I never satisfied with the things I used to enjoy, but I couldn't find any joy in them anymore. It made me think that anxiety could ruin anything that I love And so the "monster" in my head only got bigger Soon I wouldn't even allow myself to think about the things that freaked me out and so I never addressed them. So much time wasted, and so many things that I wish I was myself enough to tell the people I loved before they passed Now that I have a more full grasp of how it all works and what it is I can cope with it. But it's hard to live like that for so long and then living a healthier and better life and even succeeding in quite a few ways It's like I have Stockholm syndrome for my anxiety because I'm not used to not having it It wasn't until I smoked some weed that was strictly CBD that I realized how bad it was. Funny enough my mother said the exact same thing about her first time smoking pot; "It was like my body and mind finally let go" Still a neurotic mess that absolutely contributed to my problems, but at least I understand her now too lol I doubt anyone got to the end to read this. But if you did, and any of this sounds like you, please get help or at least research it online I only intended to write down a bit of my experience, but as more came to the surface I just kept going. I've never told anyone about this, it felt good to put it out in some way.

I've got to say, I would put breathing as number 1 head honcho. I feel like the background work of recognising the signals and bodily processes is important for those who have recurrent panic attacks, but breathing is key for everyone whether you only have one once, have them often, have them occasionally but longterm, or even are assisting someone having a panic attack - I wish everyone knew it. Practising breathwork outside of calling on it for panic attacks also really helps too. I fell into it sideways through swimming laps but I've noticed a marked difference now when I am having a p.a in how quickly I can bring myself down, because my body is practised at it and associates it with pleasure/relaxation rather than just shooting my shot mid fear response. Other tips would be if you are cognisant of your thoughts or emotions spiralling then focussing on real objects or features in the room around you can help; I will count the corners in the room or say things to myself like "lightbulb, door handle, water bottle, pillow" to ground myself in external reality rather than my internal fears. To the same end, massaging my own hands/arms/neck after my breathing and heart rate has come back a bit helps. Do some aftercare too when possible - even if it's just quietly sitting and drinking some cold water before returning to whatever it is you have to do. Forcing myself to be 'fine' as soon as all the physiological aspects stop usually means I'm teetering on the edge of tears the rest of the day and can lead back into another panic attack later on. And a piece of advice from an former therapist that stayed with me was to greet your anxiety like an old acquaintance or visitor, name it, acknowledge it when you feel it return rather than aim to eliminate it - by assuming you can and will get rid of it forever and dreading its return leads to that self-perpetuating cycle. I never actually named mine but I will always remember her example for me was a client who called her anxiety 'roast pork belly' because it was so hard to resist even though she knew it wasn't good for her all the time 😂At the time I thought the idea was ridiculous and was still quietly aiming for elimination (ha ha ha), but now I have gone months or years at a time without anxiety or having panic attacks and when it does return I'm better at recognising it, acknowledging it and working to reduce the stressors that are triggering it rather than hoping it will just go away. Even if I can't adjust my situation quickly all the time, it just helps to know that it will pass and I won't be stuck feeling like that forever - it is just a visitor. So apologies to my therapist, she was right.

I struggled with anxiety almost my whole life, my first panic attack was when I was 10 years old and I had no idea what was going on but through medication and meditation. I am 44 now and I am happy to say that I have not had a panic attack in almost 20 years. This video was spot on about everything that at least I felt when I was suffering from horrible panic attacks. And your advice is also spot on. Thank you.

I had a panic attack once on a bus after thinking I could parallel park better than someone I saw doing it. It took me a while but breathing steadily helped me calm down. This video is really insightful around managing anxiety in general, thank you so much.

I always thought these two things were separate. I was told that panic attacks generally last 10mins or less, while anxiety attacks can last for hours, and that anxiety attacks were less severe than panic attacks. My "attacks" (feeling like I'm going to throw up or pass out, difficulty breathing, hot flashes, excessive sweating, racing heart) often last for hours. While I do feel a complete loss of control, I've never felt like I was dying. This led me to believe that I'd never had a panic attack, only anxiety attacks. Have I been having panic attacks this whole time and just didn't know it?

I started having anxiety attacks when I was about 14. I've had them to different severities and as I've improved my mental wellness they become fewer and farther between. But I know knowing what it is and what brings you comfort can really help ease it, although in my experience a lot of times I just have to wait it out. I know at some point I would use ice like suck on a an ice cube, it helped with focusing on reality. Generally tho the best thing for me was having someone talking my through it either through text or on call

I've had food induced panic attacks since I was 17, I'm not 40. Every single Dr, Psychiatrist, and Psychologist I've been to, and I've been to MANY from 17-40, and they all have said that I have body imagine issues and I'm scared I'll get fat. Well, of course I want a better body but that's not the reason. I effin LOVE food, but any time I eat especially around dinner time my panic level is a 10/10. Every single day I have to do breathing exercises, ASMR, self-hypnosis all of the above just about & I am tired of it. Does this takes so much time out of my day. These panic attacks are robbing me of time...my life. If anyone has any tips please throw them my way. I wish each and every single one of you great health.

Social anxiety and looking around making sure who's where helps me keep myself from loosing control.

Honestly, the biggest thing that helps me is what a past therapist of mine called grounding techniques which are basically tricks that bring you back to the ground and out of the panic spiral. The first step of course is learning to recognize when you're in a panic spiral before it becomes a full blown panic attack, but once you figure that out, these are great: - Distraction "games" such as counting things like lights or ceiling tiles or naming items that are a specific color in the room. Not only does it cut off the panic spiral, but it will also give your body enough of a break that you'll start to feel yourself naturally start breathing more normally again. Once you're doing that it's easier to start doing breathing techniques. Admittedly, this works best when I'm in crowded spaces or alone. If I'm with people that I'm interacting with for some reason this one is harder to do. I guess you could get them to join in, but I haven't tried it. - Moving your attention to things that are more tactile like the sound of the AC, the texture of your clothing, the smell of the room (doesn't necessarily work if you're neurodivergent and those things are overstimulating, but sometimes removing yourself from the area and doing it in a space that's less stimulating still does the trick. In fact sometimes just removing your self in general can help you realize, "oh, I was just getting overstimulated, I'm fine actually.") - Building off the last one, fidget toys/objects that are specifically textured. It's a built in tactile distraction. For a while I carried a little stone bear in my pocket and running my nails along his "fur" or between his ears helped to distract myself enough to focus on my breathing instead of the thought spiral. Now, I like to use those porcupine/spikey rings because there's enough texture to focus on, plus (because they're for children) they're slightly too tight on my fingers to casually wear as a ring, so the tightness acts as a distraction in itself. The pack I bought also happened to come with the exact blue color that I've always found to be very calming, so that helps. It's also subtle enough that people don't tend to notice or comment on it the way they do most other fidget toys...or stone bears. I know worry stones also work for other people (it's just a smooth stone with a concave spot that you run your thumb along), but for me personally they're just too smooth and don't really work for me. I need something with enough texture that I can focus on that instead of my thoughts. (Also, yes, I am a 34 year old woman with a pocket in my purse full of various fidget toys. I didn't plan it out that way, but here we are.) - This one is longer and more abstract, but thought I'd share just in case it helps anyone else. My past therapist told me a story of a friend she had who decided to become a Buddhist monk and move...I want to say to Tibet (it's been the better part of a decade since I was seeing her, so the details are fuzzy) to study Buddhism in a temple for something like five years. He came back to visit and she said he was like a completely different person. When he'd left he was kind of high strung and dealt with anxiety and anger issues, and when he came back he was just super calm and soft spoken and nothing seemed to bother him. She also noticed that even being in a big city again didn't seem to impact his new composure. She asked him what he felt was the most important thing he learned in making this change and he basically told her, "That I'm in control of how I react to the world around me. I can either let it get to me and make me react or I can let it pass and move on." That's stuck with me ever since and whenever I start to get panicky I'll try to stop myself and say "Hey now, I get to choose how I react in this moment. So, what's it gonna be?" It's still not an instant fix and the smart ass side of my brain will almost always respond with some variation of "have a panic attack like I was already doing," but it does almost always stop the spiral and reminds me that I do have tools to work my way back down, I just have to utilize them.

You explained this very well ! I get panic attacks when I climb stairs. I usually do breathing exercises to overcome it. It feels like I am going to faint and I can’t walk. It still scares me to go up those stairs everytime thinking I can’t move my legs afterwards. I was was rushed to hospital because of it and they did a brain MRI and some blood tests but the results were normal and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. It was just anxiety escalating into panic attacks.

I want to thank you for making such a detailed explanation on such a topic that is often misjudged and misunderstood by people for a long time I have come among them, and because of you, I can understand it perfectly. Thank you for telling me ways to tackle this. Many people must helped by your amazing video. May god bless your soul!

I have a tic disorder and one of my most prominent tics is a sniffing tic and as a kid I had attacks often so the sniffing made my brain think I was hyperventilating and it took a long time to train my brain to know I wasn't having an attack I was just ticcing. Thanks for this video you explain it really well!!

Wow thanks!!! This will help so much ❤❤

Hi I'm Dr. Julie subscribe & follow me for lots more videos on mental health and psychology. For more on this see my new no.1 bestselling book - Why has nobody told me this before? 👉 linktr.ee/drjuliesmith

I had a panic attack and checked my heart rate which had spiked- since my dad has heart problems, I went into that misinterpretation stage. I messaged my partner who instantly got on the phone with me and walked me through breathing and made sure that my heart rate came down. I was so thankful to not be alone in that moment because I am a an avoider when it comes to some anxieties.