Good morning. For those who dont know this about me, I have a social anxiety disorder and sometimes have panic attacks when Im in public. Christina and I went to see a movie (the new Hercules movie is pretty good, btw) last night and we both needed to stop by Walmart while we were in McAlester. I enjoyed the movie and also did pretty well during dinner at the Chinese place beforehand. I was feeling pretty good about being in Walmart and I did pretty well...for a while. After walking around about an hour, my back started to hurt and my right foot went numb (I have two herniated discs in my back). I took a break and sat in a chair at the McDonalds.while Christina picked up some things near it. The pain in my back lessened, so I decided to press on. I cant really pinpoint when it started, but I found myself panicking. Racing thoughts, feeling like I couldnt breathe, feeling like I had to get out of there. It was hard to think and I felt trapped. I remembered a breathing exercise I learned during my recent stay at the hospital in Ada, so I decided to try it. I did it for about a minute, and it worked. I was able to calm down enough to finish shopping. We ended up spending 2 hours in there, mostly just walking around looking at things. On one hand, I feel horrible about having a panic attack. I feel like I ruined the whole evening because of it. Rationally, I know this is not the case, but its hard for me not to feel bad about it. I want to share the breathing exercise here. I know it has helped me get through some rough spells, especially last night in Walmart. Its very simple to do. 1. Inhale slowly through your nose for 2 seconds. 2. Hold it in for 4 seconds. 3. Exhale slowly through your mouth for 2 seconds. *Note*, this works best if you mentally count the seconds, One one-thousand, Two one-thousand... When I first heard of this exercise, I pretty much dismissed it as silly...until I tried it and it worked for me. The next time you feel panic creeping up on you, try the exercise. Do it for 1 minute. Repeat if needed. I hope everyone has a great day! ________________________________ July 27 Reflection for today: Today is my spouses birthday. The best gift I can give them is to let them be themself - not try to change them. They have the same rights as I do and are entitled to make their own decisions, whether I think they are correct or not. Criticism is a major character defect of mine - one that I ask my Higher Power to remove. It is a very unloving habit and only leads to arguments and bad feelings. Meditation for today: Help me to remember I cannot change anybody but myself. Today I will remember: I will concentrate today on my own assets and character defects, and I will be grateful for those who love me as I am. ------------------------------------------ *Note about todays Reflection: These come from the little EA book, They were written by EA members themselves and I type them exactly as they appear in the book, with the exception of today. Todays Reflection was written by a female and I changed references to the spouse so they are gender-neutral*
Posted on: Sun, 27 Jul 2014 12:07:09 +0000
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