Hey! Panic attacks of varying degrees have been a part of my life for many years. They vary from fairly minor occurrences through to the ones that make me feel like my legs won't hold me up & I'm going to lose consciousness.

I use the things below both when I feel one coming on to try & stop it before it takes hold & also while I'm having one. They don't always work 100% of the time. But it helps me cope.

With the less severe ones I find singing helps if I'm in a place I can sing. I find when singing (or even humming a song if I can't think of the words) I breathe at the natural breathing points in the song and for me that helps bring my breathing back into a regular pattern & the rest of the symptoms subside.

With more severe ones I was taught a technique by my counsellor to name (out loud if I can) 5 things I can see & then give 5 descriptive words to each item. The double action of my brain having to think & talking seems to provide enough distraction to stop me concentrating on the symptoms.

At other times when they've happened when I'm alone I've called my parents or a good friend & told them what's going on. I am lucky to have a small but very supportive group of people who I can call at anytime & once they know/realise what's happening they just talk to me about anything. The weather, the TV, what they had for dinner & when I can answer them I do & eventually the attack passes. Again it's the distraction that I think makes the difference, that and knowing that if I'm on my own, I have the comfort of knowing that at least the person I'm calling would be able to summon medical help for me if it became clear I was in too much difficulty or I stopped responding. That's never happened - the attacks have always passed in the end.

I hope this might help others