JUST HAD A PANIC ATTACK OVER PHOBIA.

[debbie41]

I KNOW THIS MAY SOUND RATHER SILLY, BUT EVER SINCE I HAD A BAD DOSE OF FLU IN2007
WHERE I HAD A BLOCKED NOSE FOR FIVE WEEKS, I HAVE DEVELOPED A PHOBIA OF IT.
I AM CURRENTLY SUFFERING FROM A COMMON COLD, AND IVE GOT THE USUAL BLOCKED NOSE
AND LOSS OF TASTE/SMELL, WHILST DOWNSTAIRS WATCHING TV I HAD THIS DREADFUL
PANIC ATTACK OVER IT, I'M CURRENTLY ON ANTIDEPRESSANTS AND BETABLOCKERS FROM
MY DOCTOR WHILST WAITING FOR THERAPY ON THE NHS FOR THIS CONDITION, BUT RIGHT
NOW I FEEL ISOLATED AND EXTREMLEY ON EDGE, THIS OCCURED IN JANUARY WHEN I
ENCOUNTERED A COLD. PLEASE CAN OTHER GUESTS ADVISE ME ON THIS, I TRIED REALAXATION BREATHING, EVEN DISTRACTION BUT TO NO AVAIL, ITS THE WORST FEELING
EVER. MUCH APPRECIATED A FRIGHTENED DEBBIE 41

[sillyava]

I keep seeing some commercial on TV about stuffiness, and how it's not mucus, it's inflammation.  Maybe if you took an antihistimine to try and clear your nose it might help.  The relaxation breathing probably won't help because you will just keep noticing how stuffy you are when you are trying to breath.  The only other thing I can think of is to maybe try and distract yourself with a good movie, or a game.  Hope you feel better.

[SeaRunner]

Debbie -

Sorry to hear you're battling a cold.  As a fellow sufferer of panic attacks, I understand how seemingly harmless things can lead us into panic.  However, I'm curious about your particular train of thought.  I'm assuming that the panic attack you had was the result of what-if thinking spiraling out of control.  So may I ask, what is it that you ultimately fear might happen?  Is it that you think you won't be able to breath at all?  Perhaps if you let yourself go through the worry process all the way to completion you can work out some of this anxiety.  When you spend enough time thinking about what you are really fearing and then can show yourself how unlikely or unrealistic the fear or fears can be, it goes a long way towards combating the source of your panic.

I realize that doing this is much easier said than done.  It is a skill that you have to work at.  At first it will probably be very uncomfortable as you allow your mind to wander to all the scary places that it might choose to go.  One of the ways to help combat the fear and ground yourself is to write down your fears as you think of them.  Then beneath each fear, write down how likely the fear is to actually come true and whether the fear is really justified.  You can also write down what is a much more realistic outcome or result.  Consider the following example:

FEAR: My nose is all congested and I won't be able to breathe.
REALITY: No matter how congested my nose gets, I can always breathe through my mouth.  I am getting plenty of air and although I may feel nervous and uncomfortable, it's mostly because I'm feeling symptoms of my anxiety and they will pass in time.

Hope this helps!
Jamie

[debbie41]

Thankyou jamie for your advice on combating this awful panic attack, i will try to do what you
suggest, ive just woke this morning really panicy and feel so edgy, to the point ive had to take
a tranquilizer that the doctor perscribed for severe panic attacks only. What you advised is very
logical, my mind jumps to the same conclusion im suffocating when in fact im not, i will write my
fears down and look at it logically. I really appreciate your help at this terrifing time for me.
debbie.