Now - not everyone who suffers with panic attacks will develop the "fear” of having a panic attack.

For some, it's their only fear, for others, they may have other "situational” panic attacks (a situational panic attack is when a person experiences a panic attack from being in a certain place, or placed in a certain situation, an example of this would be, if you experience a panic attack every time you enter the shopping centre, usually these type of panic attacks occur repeatedly when a person is put in this same situation over and over again). Or you can have a combination of both.

However, a fear of a panic attack is just one big vicious cycle. You sit worrying "am I going to have a panic attack?” - "I don't want to experience a panic attack, it frightens me”. Now you're in the cycle of each panic attack feeding off the next!

One method I used to help me overcome this thought was squeezing stress balls and putting my full concentration on only the ball I was squeezing (sounds kinky I know, but it's NOT ok? So get your mind out of the gutter) ;-)

Here is how I u

Grab two balloons and cut them in half, fill them with rice and place the two bigger round parts together. Make sure you have filled them as full as you can so it pulls tightly around the balloons. This should be perfect fist size.

Ta-da - You now have your own stress ball!

Note: Never self diagnose. Make sure you visit your local GP first. All material provided is for informational or educational purposes only. No content is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Consult your doctor regarding the applicability of any opinions or recommendations with respect to your symptoms or medical condition.