Here’s my go to in this order. If the first one doesn’t work, I move to the second.

During Anxiety - the kind that can trigger panic attacks:

1) Deep slow breathing.

2) Present Moment descriptive exercise: I’ll sit and use whatever is around me. If I’m driving, I’ll describe the texture of the steering wheel in my hands, what I’m smelling, what I see, how the seat feels beneath me. I say it all out loud.

3) Ice. I hold ice. Emotions effect the body, so I use the body to alter the emotions. Ice jolts me back to the present moment and I can try again at step 1.

4) If none of that works, I look at the trigger and have the moment. I let it flow over me and then it’s lots of self love time.

Preventative:
To help me keep anxiety at bay, I exercise, Craft, do music, play with my puppy, bake, take a bath, walk in the sun and meditate using the app Insight Timer