April 15, 2010
Relaxation Tips Newsletter
Hello,
I'm Candi, with Inner Health Studio. Welcome to Edition 18 of Inner Health Studio Relaxation Tips.
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In This Issue...
Inner Health Studio Updates and News
New Relaxation Scripts
Tip of the Month: Why You Won't Get Rid of Panic Attacks
Inner Health Studio Updates and News
I would like to thank the listeners who have contacted me with ideas for relaxation podcast topics. Please continue to submit your requests. It usually takes a few weeks before requests will appear on the podcast, but I do try to accommodate all requests as quickly as I can.If there are types of relaxation techniques you want to hear, topics you are interested in, or relaxation for specific purposes, please let me know! Your ideas help me come up with new relaxation scripts.
As a subscriber to this Newsletter, you can get 30% off my new Guided Relaxation Scripts CD with the following discount code: 4E9Q3S6Z
Relaxation downloads are available for $2.75 each. Buy 3 or more downloads, and receive 15% off your entire order. Use this discount code: special15d0410
Feature Questions:
What is the Worst Panic Attack You Ever Had? Click here to describe your worst panic attack or read about the panic attacks others have experienced.
New Relaxation Scripts
Decrease Fidgeting Relaxation ScriptThis relaxation script will help you to decrease fidgeting with your hands. This exercise will allow you to reduce anxiety to create a feeling of calm and be still, even when faced with stress.
Finding Your Authentic Self
Explore your values and connect with your authentic self. Use this relaxation technique to get in touch with your true self, live up to your full potential, and live according to your true identity.
Relaxation to Deal with Loneliness
This relaxation script is to deal with loneliness by increasing confidence, developing a strong sense of self, and getting ready to take action to decrease loneliness.
Lucid Dreaming: Rewriting the End of a Nightmare
This relaxation script is a lucid dreaming exercise for rewriting the end of a nightmare. Being lucid while dreaming means that you can influence the dream.
Tip of the month: Why you won't get rid of panic attacks
If you experience panic attacks, you have probably tried all sorts of methods for getting rid of anxiety. You have probably tried reducing the triggers that cause panic attacks. You may have worked on using positive self-talk. You probably use relaxation techniques. Maybe you have worked on changing thoughts and beliefs that contribute to anxiety. You most likely have adjusted your schedule and changed the way you live your life. It seems like you have tried everything, and nothing works.
Does this mean that you are going to have panic attacks forever? It may seem that way, but no - you can get rid of panic attacks. One key strategy may be missing, and that is exposure. You probably won't get rid of panic attacks if you do not use this important technique.
Exposure is the process of exposing yourself to the panic, feared situations, or triggers. Before you try using exposure, it is advisable to consult a professional (such as a therapist) who can help guide you through the process. I do not recommend using exposure techniques on your own unless you have spoken with a doctor, therapist, or other professional first.
Here's how exposure works. Suppose you have a phobia of heights. Exposure would involve climbing to the top of a ladder, and waiting until the anxiety goes away. It may take quite a while the first time you use exposure - maybe 20 minutes or even longer.
By going through the feared experience and riding out the panic, the situation or trigger no longer holds such power. The next time you climb to the top of a ladder, the panic will probably be less intense and of shorter duration. After a few sessions of exposure, the panic can go away entirely, so that climbing to the top of a ladder is no longer a frightening experience.
Perhaps the feared situation is panic itself. You may not notice any particular triggers for panic attacks, and your main fear is having a panic attack. Exposure in this situation is to deliberately induce a panic attack. Imagine the sensations and symptoms of panic, and encourage them - try to increase your heart rate, deliberately breathe shallowly and hyperventilate, and make your muscles more tense. Induce a panic attack and then try to keep your anxiety as high as possible. The anxiety will decrease eventually no matter how hard you try to maintain it. Panic attacks will no longer seem dangerous. If a panic attack is not scary anymore, you no longer have panic attacks.
It seems backward to cause panic attacks as a way of getting rid of panic, and that is why so many people miss this essential strategy. If you have tried everything else and still haven't found a way to get rid of anxiety, exposure can be a panic attack cure.
If you have tried exposure and still have not experienced relief from panic attacks, start again with the basics:
- See your doctor to rule out physical causes
- Use coping techniques like relaxation, positive self-talk, and changing your thinking
- Do more exposure; keep practicing several times
- Consult a mental health professional for support and guidance
You can get rid of panic attacks - maybe exposure is the key.
For more information on exposure and on many other techniques for getting rid of panic attacks, check out David Burns' book: When Panic Attacks: The New, Drug-Free Anxiety Therapy That Can Change Your Life
Relaxation for Coping with Panic
This relaxation for coping with panic script can help you to manage the symptoms experienced during a panic attack, and return to a state of calm.