The Health Blog

If you suffer from an anxiety disorder, panic attacks may be a part of your life. Even with proper medication, many patients suffer from panic attacks. Although predicting when a panic attack will happen may be a bit tricky, you can take steps to prepare for these panic attacks in order to take back control of your life.

The first step to taking back that control is to learn to breathe. When a person has a panic attack, often they feel so overwhelmed that they forget to simply breathe properly. Many doctors, therefore, advocating safe breathing practices in order to help calm anyone having a panic attack. In fact, if you’ve ever had a panic attack in public, someone may have tried to get you to breath into a paper bag. This may or may be a good method for you, but the fact is that you should know and practice your breathing exercise before you are panicking. Have a plan—learn calming breathing techniques and practice at least twice a day.

Other relaxing practices may also be able to help your panic attack. Of course, you might find it difficult to even consider meditation when you’re having a panic attack, but by learning this relaxing procedure, you can use some of the same calming techniques that help you to meditate to help you calm down.

Another great way to prepare for a panic attack is to simply know your triggers. Do you have a specific phobia? Is excess stress your downfall? Do certain situations seem impossible for you? When you know what triggers panic reactions, you can do your best to avoid or minimize these situations.

You should also be medically prepared for a panic attack. When you go outside of the home, take with you a list of emergency contacts, which should include your doctor’s number, your local crisis hotline, and members of your personal support systems. You can use these phone numbers yourself if you feel a panic attack starting, or another person will easily find this information in your purse or wallet if you are not capable of helping yourself.

Also take with you a bag to help you feel comfortable and calm down during a panic attack. A crucial part of the bag is any medications you may be taking, along with instructions on taking it. You can also include any items from home that will help you feel more comfortable. This can include herbal tea, a stuffed animal, religious items, photos, rubber bands to snap on your wrist, mints, hand cream, money, a puzzle book, and anything else that may help you relax, stimulated your brain, or distract yourself. Remember, comfort is key.

Right now, 20 million Americans are in the midst of an episode of depression.

Some have the incapacitating symptoms of what doctors call a major depression. These symptoms usually require professional attention because they are very severe and demoralizing. Feeling hopeless and worthless, a person with major depression may sleep and eat irregularly.

In the throes of severe depression, it is hard to concentrate, make decisions, or find the energy to do much of anything. Thoughts of suicide are common.

Depression primarily refers to a state of mind that is purely negative, with an inclination to insufficiency and a hopeless lack of interest to do things.

If someone has a minor depression, however, the problem is more manageable. Experts say that people who have some minor depression will feel lousy about themselves and lousy about their lives, but they are managing to function at a high level.

In fact, some of the newfound ways of battling the blues are related to what you do as well as what you feel. Here are some ways that you can prepare your body to help prevent minor depression:

1. Put some spring in your step.

Regular exercise may be the most powerful natural antidepressant available. It is advisable that you take a brisk walk. Exercise helps generate the release of brain chemicals called endorphins. When endorphin levels are low, depression occurs. Exercise also oxygenates the brain, keeping it healthy.

How much should you exercise? Thirty minutes, five or six days a week, at moderate intensity, is a nice level to aim for to help prevent the brain imbalances that can make you vulnerable to depression.

So you’ve forgotten where you put your room keys, trouble recalling the name of someone you met previously, and you can’t remember why you opened the refrigerator? At times everyone has problems remembering.

I am one of those having memory lapses. I always forget where I put my stethoscope. I even lost my first one - I must have left it at the ER, at the nurse’s station, or at the patient’s room, I don’t know. I only had my notebook in my hand but couldn’t recall where my stethoscope go. A friend of mine, was consoling me and gave me a good advice: “Always put the important things first.” Since then, I always make sure that the stethoscope has my first hold when leaving a place.

So how to remember what you usually forget?

1. Names. When you meet someone, repeat the person’s name aloud as soon as you can. Say, “Nice to meet you, Jack.” Then look closely at him and repeat his name silently to yourself 10 times.

2. Numbers. Break long numbers down into meaningful chunks. For instance, checking account number 1048630, is easier to remember if you think of it as 10:48 (time for midmorning break) and 6:30 (dinner time). You can also associate numbers with special dates such as you birthday or anniversary.

3. Shopping lists. Visualize your house with a giant version of each item in various rooms: a huge egg in the kitchen, a big loaf of bread in the bedroom, etc. When shopping, mentally scan your house to recall your list. But the best technique still is doing your shopping list.

“Music heals the soul,” so the old saying says. Recent studies show that the healing power of music is effective to the mind, too.

A new Finnish study found out that music speeds stroke recovery i.e. listening to their favorite music helps stroke patients recover mental function and makes them less depressed and confused.

Music is said to stimulate neural networks. The music group in this research was provided with CD players and CDs of their favorite music in any musical genre and let them listened to it for at least one hour every day for the first two months after their stroke.

Results showed that verbal memory improved significantly higher in the patients (by 60%) who listened to their favorite music than to audio diaries (18%) and non-listeners (29%) after 3 weeks.

However, further studies are needed for validation of this research.