“It is important to know that there are lots of ways to manage anxiety.”
If someone is having a panic attack. A good strategy is to acknowledge that what they are going through can be really scary. Next, you need to get them to try and take as much of a deep breath as they can. If they are hyperventilating, they won’t be able to breathe in much at all. So, they will need to do this over and over again. It can take 15 or 20 minutes to calm someone from a panic attack, remember the calmer you are the faster the other person will calm down.
If they can, get them to drink cold water which can also help them calm down.
· Get your child to try journaling or writing down whatever is on their mind, this gets the worry out of your head and into someone positive. Spelling and handwriting are not important in this exercise.
· Try slowly breathing in, imagine you are breathing in calm and breathing out worry.
· Try drinking cold water, sucking on ice or putting a cold facecloth on your face. The coldness helps soothe anxiety.
· Try walking outside, ideally in nature or along a river
· Take a warm bath
· Teach children to ask, in six months’ time will this be a significant problem.
If these techniques don’t work then you should see a therapist or a doctor.
