[HolographicTardis]

I have been diagnosed with severe anxiety but I am not taking any medication at the moment. Does anyone have any advice for calming down during an anxiety/panic attack? Thanks!

[CANDC]

HolographicTardis, welcome to Psych Central.

Well, medication can be a real help for stabilizing the situation.

Talking to a therapist can also be a help.

If you are feeling very anxious right now, you can try a breathing exercise that takes the attention away from the trigger of anxiety to a simple tool of counting breaths.

Find a comfortable position seated or laying down. Begin to relax your breathing. Silently count 1 on the inhale, and two on the exhale. Then silently count 3 on the inhale and 4 on the exhale. Continue up to 10 or until you lose the count then return to one. No judgement. I sometimes end up at 18 then smile and return to 1. The idea is to focus on the breath and the counting and not get sucked into the anxiety trigger.

You can private message any Community Liason for additional questions or repost here or open up a new post.

Food is a contributing factor for me. I used to binge on carbos and get into terrible anxiety. I found that by having a low carb high protein diet with small meals ever 3-4 hours., my anxiety levels were much tamer. I also became aware of what triggered my anxiety and tried to avoid those things when possible.

[jelly-bean]

I usually need to isolate myself. Then I light scented candles and listen to Josh Groban or Kenny G. I don't take meds either and I need beautiful music. Any other kind works me up further.