Yes, the breathing is SO important. I recommend practicing when you are not not experiencing a great deal of anxiety or a full-fledged panic attack. It is really difficult to try to focus on your breathing when you are feeling like you're having a heart attack and you're convinced that you cannot control your own body, let alone your breathing patterns. It's much easier if your body has already practiced these breathing techniques and then you are more used to it. Also, in the above post about a piece of hard candy or mint, that works so well for me, too!