A panic attack is a terrifying experience. Losing control is frightening and inexplicable. One moment everything appears normal, the next you are in the throes of desperation, usually without warning. Fear makes things worse and before you know it you are afraid it may happen again, causing just that thing to happen. Every day of our lives is subject to stress. What to eat, how to dress, finding solutions to problems. A degree of stress is positive, bringing creativity and progress. This enables us to handle challenging situations. If stress levels build up a new situation arises, one of negative stress. Left to build up, it can have wide reaching effects on our physical body, our emotions and our environment. Taking on more and more responsibility allows the negative stress to continue to build until something snaps. Individual stressful situations are not to blame, just sheer volume. If you fill a bin with rubbish it will continue to fill. You may push it down to make more space until it’s full to capacity. One more small piece of rubbish is all it takes for the entire pile to overflow! This is what is referred to as stress “burnout.” The reaction to a stressful situation is called ‘The Fight or Flight’ response. In times past our ancestors reacted two ways to a stressful situation. They could either stay and fight or just run away. Simple. In modern times this is no longer the solution. Perhaps our employer is giving us a hard time? We may wish to fight them but this would give us more stress. Perhaps you could think of resigning but who would pay the bills? Should this situation continue over long periods of time the effects of negative stress will manifest. Alarm bells are sounded inside the physical body. You tense up and breathing increases. Adrenalin is secreted into the bloodstream. The liver releases stored Glycogen so sugar and cholesterol levels rise. The heart rate increases with more blood being pumped to the muscles. Your body is now fully prepared and ready to make swift decisions over which action it should take. This response is natural and not harmful to us if we use the fight or flight valve. Cholesterol could build up in the arteries but increased blood flow prevents this from building up in the artery walls. Many vitamins that are produced to maintain health become depleted during periods of prolonged negative stress, particularly Vitamins B, C and E. Because these are water soluble they need to be replaced daily. As the stores run down we are more prone to illness. Depression, nervous system disorders and nervous tics are likely, also coughs and colds, headaches, stomach complaints and insomnia. The results of negative stress may be different from one person to another. It is important to learn to read the signals of negative stress burnout before it builds up! To combat and control a panic attack here are some tips to calm down: Breathe into a paper bag to balance levels of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide. Breathing Exercises Breathe in to the slow count of seven, hold the breath to the slow count of seven, then breathe out deeply. Repeat until your heart rate slows down. Run your wrists under cold water. This helps to slow down the heart rate. Keep the palms of your hands open.