| When I was in what I call my panic attacks and | | | | But this article isn't about me now. I've been without |
| anxiety phase (six years!) perhaps the most disturbing | | | | panic attacks for 25 years. I still have anxiety. Most |
| feeling I experienced was that of "being in a movie". | | | | people do. It's manageable and even necessary. |
| I wasn't real anymore. During the worst of the attacks I | | | | No, this article is about you or someone you know that |
| watched myself like I was in a movie, a bad movie, | | | | is experiencing excessive anxiety on a fairly |
| written by someone else. I didn't know what was going | | | | continuous basis. A bad way to live. |
| to happen next but I suspected it was going to be bad. | | | | The depersonalization and resulting sense of "unreality" |
| That's how it felt and it was another awful component | | | | is a frightening side symptom to the anxiety-panic |
| to the whole anxiety disorder syndrome. | | | | attack disorder. But it is just that. It's sort of a side |
| In my case it kept me from seeking help. | | | | effect, and you can rest assured that it will pass. |
| I thought I was losing my mind and I didn't want to go | | | | During my time with this (six years) I learned to just let |
| to the doctor and find out that I was right! | | | | it ride. |
| I have been a businessman for 40 years. I've had a lot | | | | I told myself, "I have been here before. This has |
| of meetings, although I probably would have had far | | | | always passed." |
| more and more productive meetings during that period | | | | As a result of these simple positive affirmations, the |
| if I didn't have my thoughts flashing to the dark hole in | | | | unreality and depersonalization feelings, while they didn't |
| the back of my mind. | | | | go away, their fright factor went down. Way down. |
| It was the dark hole in the back of my mind that the | | | | I saw this little victory as a first step to learning how to |
| evil panic attack lived. I knew this was a construct but | | | | stop panic attacks, which I wanted very much to stop. |
| it's how I came to see panic attacks...as an evil entity. | | | | It was wrecking my life! |
| And having an evil entity in one's head will make you | | | | It wasn't much further down the road that I had that |
| feel crazy. | | | | "halleleuia" moment in my car when I realized that my |
| But that wasn't all. I "knew" this idea wasn't real. The | | | | anger at this entity ruining my life was what put me in |
| feelings were real, the whole disorder was real, but the | | | | charge again. I was stronger than the panic attacks |
| thing causing it wasn't real. Worse, it was unknown. | | | | now! If one came I turned it right around and sent it |
| Very scary. | | | | packing. |
| I now know that patients in mental institutions must | | | | I did it in one move and you can too. Only YOU don't |
| have very frightening thoughts going through their | | | | have to wait six years! |
| heads, because if you have any idea that you are | | | | I guarantee you this. You can have your life back. And |
| losing your mind you also fear that you are losing | | | | you're gonna LOVE IT! |
| yourself. It is awful. | | | | |