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You Are Not Your Panic: Grounding Through Your Brain Preparing To Run From Danger.

  • Writer: PRSL
    PRSL
  • 1 hour ago
  • 4 min read
My tattoo is near a place that holds a lot of painful history. Now it is a reminder to be kind to myself and goes with the Blockbuster saying "be kind. please rewind"
My tattoo is near a place that holds a lot of painful history. Now it is a reminder to be kind to myself and goes with the Blockbuster saying "be kind. please rewind"

Panic and anxiety on the road and well in any life situation.....is not quiet. It’s not always manageable. It’s loud and truly overwhelming. And sometimes it takes over your entire body, your entire focus.


A friend asked me earlier, “What does a panic attack actually feel like?”


And the only way I could explain it was this: You know when you’re hiking up a steep incline, pushing your body to get to the top, and your chest starts to tighten? Your breathing gets shallow, your heart is racing, and you feel that pressure building? Now imagine that… happening out of nowhere. No incline. No reason. No control.


Your heart is pounding like you’re sprinting, but you’re standing still.Your breathing won’t slow down no matter how hard you try. Your vision starts to blur at the edges.Your body feels like it’s about to give out. And for a moment, you really believe you might pass out. Or worse.


That’s what it feels like. Your mind is preparing your body for danger.


I’ve had panic attacks:


  • behind the table or under the tent, smiling at strangers while my chest is tight and I’m trying not to fall apart

  • in truck stop showers that cost $17 and just trying to feel like a person again

  • in the van outside venues, hyperventilating after being made to feel like I shouldn’t be there, like I’m in the way, even when I’ve done everything right

  • After my Pap died, I saw an older man who looked like him. I panicked with grief so hard I threw up.


If you’re dealing with anxiety or panic attacks, whether you’re on the road or just trying to survive your everyday life, YOU ARE NOT ALONE in this. These are some of the techniques that help me and people around me. We’re all different, so not everything will stick and that’s okay. Keep trying until you find what fits your tool belt.



1. The 5-4-3-2-1 Method (This one is my favorite)


I’ve done this sitting in a van outside a venue more times than I can count.

  • 5 things I can see (exit signs, people walking by, a cracked windshield)

  • 4 things I can touch (seat fabric, my phone, the steering wheel)

  • 3 things I can hear (traffic, muffled soundcheck, someone laughing)

  • 2 things I can smell

  • 1 thing I can taste


It sounds simple, but when your brain is spiraling, giving it a job can pull you out just enough to breathe again.



  1. Box Breathing (there are many breathing techniques but I need less math when I spiral)


This one is pretty easy, and honestly one I come back to a lot because I can manage it.

  • Inhale for 4

  • hold for 4

  • exhale for 4

  • hold for 4.

I picture a box in my head while I do it and sometimes I’ll literally trace it in the air just to give my brain something to latch onto. It works because it slows everything down: your breathing, your heart rate, your thoughts, and gives your body a chance to catch up.



  1. Embrace some extremes to draw focus


Sometimes you need something intense to interrupt the panic.

  • Sour Candy

  • Ice cold drink - think a brain freeze

  • holding an ice cube tight

  • splashing cold water on your face

  • an ice cube on your wrist


It gives your body something real to focus on when everything else feels overwhelming.



  1. Moving your body in a different way


Sometimes the anxiety gets trapped in your body, and you have to move it out.

Focus on movement where you can feel it: the stretch, the ground, the release.

  • Dance it out

  • Yoga, if that’s your thing

  • Walk a few laps

  • Stretch on the ground


You’re not trying to fix everything, just letting some of that energy go.



What we don't say enough is that sometimes grounding doesn't work right away. Even tried and tested methods can fail you in moments. Sometimes you do everything you know and your body is still in a pure panic.


THAT DOES NOT MEAN YOU HAVE FAILED.


It means your nervous system is overwhelmed. The goal isn’t to instantly feel better.The goal is to not let the panic completely take you out. Give yourself the space. Sometimes you have to be wildly uncomfortable and sit through it. Sometimes you have to ask for help. You are not broken. I honestly use the crisis text line a lot as my backup when grounding doesn't work. I also have an emergency panic med as my "incase of emergency" moment.


I have NO SHAME in sharing my daily routine for my mental health. I take propranolol every day for migraines, but also because it helps with the physical side of my anxiety. I take sertraline daily, and I keep a rescue med for when grounding and my regular meds just aren’t cutting it. This is on top of talking to a therapist and using the crisis textline when nothing seems to be working.



My final thought: I don’t have this all figured out.


I still panic. I still spiral. Hell, this week my brain decided I should feel intense heartbreak and deep sadness for a couple hours every day driving from Denver to Philadelphia. I was fully sobbing behind the wheel at times. Listening to music that honestly didn't help uplift the vibes.


So yeah, I still have days where everything feels heavier than it should. But grounding gives me something to hold onto when everything feels like it’s unraveling. And sometimes, that’s enough to get me to the next stop.The next conversation with a stranger that snaps me out of it, if only for a moment.


There are more of us out here than you think. You belong here, even when you are barely holding it together. You are not alone.


Tina

 
 
 

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