Joshua Fletcher, aka The Anxiety Geek, is a psychotherapist and author who specialises in working with anxiety-related conditions. A previous sufferer of several anxiety diagnoses that followed a tragic life event, Josh is now one of the leading voices on anxiety disorders and he uses his knowledge to help and educate others through his best-selling self-help books, his podcast The Panic Pod and on social media @AnxietyJosh.
Five things you didn’t know about panic
1. You can’t die of a panic attack
A panic attack is an adrenaline rush, like getting a week’s worth of adrenaline in one hit, and it can be terrifying if you don’t know what’s happening. Your brain is so clever that it starts to try to work out why you are having a panic attack. But it’s biologically and physically impossible to die from a panic attack even though it may feel like it in the moment.
2. The best thing to do? Nothing
If you do nothing when you’re being flooded with adrenaline, you will actually be rewarded with endorphins, which will make you feel like you’ve just done a gym session. If you get up to find fresh air, seek reassurance or put in another coping mechanism you are essentially thanking your threat response. Instead, sit with it to prove the threat response wrong. You only have a certain amount of adrenaline and cortisol in your body so it will go away.
3. Don’t listen to your body
We are often taught in the wellness world to listen to our body, in this instance, ignore it and carry on. Don’t listen to your thoughts, they are nonsense. You can’t stop them and they will pass. It passes quicker the more you face it. Feel the fear and do it anywhere, be compassionate with yourself.
4. Having a panic attack is brave, not weak
There’s a thing called emotional conservatism, if you are really prejudiced towards yourself for being anxious and perceive it as being weak. Your problem isn’t weakness, it’s naivety. If you go to work despite having feelings of panic, you are so brave, that’s not weak it’s incredibly courageous.
5. Anything can trigger panic
Noises can trigger panic attacks especially for people who have suffered PTSD or trauma. When I hear hospital noises, I feel panic. Perhaps a lack of sleep or stress with work, they all make you more susceptible. Bright lights and smells that remind you of things can trigger panic attacks.
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