Anxiety and panic attacks are a build up of internal pressure, anxious pressure. The anxiety builds to a point that a trigger event will cause a panic attack. In other words, the pressure that was building unconsciously erupts when an event ignites it, feeling like you are going to die or are having a heart attack. The triggering event could be insignificant, such as, loosing some car keys. It is enough to unleash all the repressed fears that are just outside of awareness. It looks as if it is just about the car keys. But the reaction is an accumulation of fears that have a long history.
Medication can manage symptoms but the history of accumulated anxiety needs to be brought out and laid on the table. Then the anxiety needs to be sorted out. It was relevant at one time, but now it is a prison. The panic attack has just brought that to our attention. Something needs to be done and you can’t “just get over it”, that attitude will actually build more pressure. It takes a little kindness toward yourself and maybe some help.
For example, loosing the car keys ends up representing all the losses, such as, loosing control in your personal life, loosing a loved one emotionally or physically, or loosing possibilities of success. Fear of failure is one of the most common themes with anxiety and then the humiliation and hurt that follows.
Anxiety begets anxiety
The pressure of success vs failure hidden in panic attacks is what I would like to shine light on. The tension building up to succeed and not fail has mounted to such a point, that the mind and body is taken over, knocked to the ground, a trip to the emergency ward, because it feels as if you are dying from a heart attack. Yes, it is an emotional heart attack. “The pressure is breaking my heart.”
This may sound unusual but something does have to die. A confused attitude about success that is no longer relevant has to die and be replaced with a new definition of success, a success that works for you. Then failure just indicates that you are off your path and there is something to learn. It becomes more about living a life that fits for you and living from the inside out, rather than living a life of adaptation to external or cultural ideals.
It doesn’t take an expert
It doesn’t take an expert to tell us that children learn from their environment. What fears did you learn growing up that do not help anymore? In fact, they may get in the way of life itself. What are some fantasies or assumptions that you have made about yourself that are ridiculous? Anxiety built up over a life time gets stronger if you resist it or hate it. It lessens as you see it for what it is, some old beliefs that are not relevant. Then, you can choose to live life with a new sense of success that values your humanity.
