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| 2 years ago, my cousin started to have panic attacks. her family suspected that it may be due to too much stress from her work at that time. she was really not herself when the panic attacks attack. she was very much in panic. she didn't want to eat and when she would drink water she felt like she would drown. after that year, she has gotten better.
i'm just concerned that something like this might happen again to her if she gets too stressed out. will yoga help her with it?
thank you very much. |
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Veteran
Posts: 163
 
| It might. There are lots of causes for panic attacks, and some of them are physical, some are spiritual and some are psychological. The first thing that I would do is to recommend that she see a physician who can evaluate the physical component. In many cases panic attacks are very easy to treat. That said, yoga can be helpful, but she should make sure that she's seeing a experienced teacher. Some poses, like savasana, can make people feel panicked.
As someone who suffered from debilitating panic attacks for 3 years before I got help, I am happy to say that I am 10 years panic free and yoga has been a big part of my recovery. Tell her that there is hope!
Namaste. |
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Veteran
Posts: 113
Location: Uppsala, Sweden | Yes, yoga can definitely be of help. It is also important to examine the root cause of the panic attacks.
Whenever I need to calm down, this is the first asana (yoga posture) that comes to mind, balasana (child's pose):
http://www.yogamates.com/poses/296/
You should also focus on deep long breathing, with long slow inhale and even longer exhale, relax and keep your attention to the breath, let it rise and fall smoothly. Don't hold your breath, let it flow naturally. The longer your exhale, the better the calming effect. Close your eyes or keep the gaze on the nose. Covering yourself with a blanket, further closes you off from the outside world, withdrawing the senses from external stimuli. If possible, go to a place or room with as little noise as possible.
"Yoga for Anxiety and Panic Attacks" & "Yoga for Stress and Burnout" (articles in Joga Journal, by Dr Timothy McCall)
http://www.yogajournal.com/for_teachers/2390
http://www.yogajournal.com/for_teachers/2365
A couple of pranayama techniques:
http://www.yogapranayama.net/ujjayi-pranayama.html
http://www.yogapranayama.net/yoga-breathing/anuloma-pranayama.html
... more links:
http://www.yogajournal.com/for_teachers/519
http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/809
http://www.yogajournal.com/health/2085
Best thing to do when you are panicking - don't panic! ;) |
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| Hi,
Yes yoga can help with panic attacks....but she should go to a professional yoga therapist....not just a regular class.
Due to a very slow internet connection I have not looked at the links given above....BUT you should NEVER assume that cirtain asanas are good for reducing anxiety....it is a completly individual thing....
At a workshop yesterday we were exploring asanas which made use feel safe,calm,relaxed...
and I moved into child pose as traditionally it is thought to feel safe and calming....But after a very short time I (and others at the workshop) found exactly the opposite.....claustrahopic,hot and feeling very vunerable as unable to see around and the buttock area is slightly lifted and can feel very exposed for some people.....
NEVER assume that if you feel "x" sensation in asana "y" that anyone else will have that same sensation.We are all totally different with totally different ways of feeling,experiencing......
I hope that she can find a therapist to work with....working alone is not a good idea unless she is absolutly sure about the causes of the panic attacks.
Alison |
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| Allison makes really good points here. I would only add that just as a particular pose is not the same for everyone, needing a professional yoga therapist instead of regular classes is not necessarily right for everyone either. I would also caution that since there are no standards for yoga therapists like there are for Physical Therapists or Mental Health Therapists, you need to research the person carefully before going to them.
A regular class will probably lower her stress levels and help her to relax. A yoga therapist can help her work on specific problems. A mental health therapist is also often helpful when dealing with anxiety and panic attacks. It all depends on the reason for the panic attacks, as they are a symptom of something else. (It could also be a medical problem.)
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| wow, thank you all very much for your answers. i learned a lot from them.
i'll make sure that my cousin gets to read this topic so she can decide if she would like to practice yoga as part of her road to relieving anxiety and panic attacks.
i really appreciate your time for reading and answering this topic. thank you  |
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| You might want to consider doing Kapalbhati, It does wonders. http://www.baba-ramdev.info/kapalbhati.html |
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Member
Posts: 14
| Probably not in and of itself, but yoga could play a very big part of a lifestyle adjustment that would help to balance her mentally. |
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Member
Posts: 9
| Everyone here brings up some great points, and yoga can definitely help as part of a balanced and healthy lifestyle. I would also suggest your cousin try meditating. Meditation can help bring to light root causes of her anxiety while treating the panic attacks themselves.
Steve
Yoga Learning Center - Yoga Online |
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New User
Posts: 2
| I had an issue with anxiety and panic attacks before I started my Yoga Routine. Now that I have a steady Yoga routine, I have not had a panic attack since then. I'm not saying it will help, but it could. It all depends on the severity of her condition. |
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New User
Posts: 3
| Yoga is good for stress relief.If do yoga regularly in our life than we can free from stress in our life so we need to do yoga in our daily activity at least one time in a day.It is easy to do.There no more space require in this exercise so not to worry. |
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| Yoga is definitely good for stress relief. I also do basic yoga to feel fresh and energetic. Yoga is a one kind of exercise only is very helpful. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 399
Location: Oregon | I really like what Rex wrote. I work at a residential psychiatric treatment center for children. A lot of the therapies we use, like CBT and DBT, though dressed up in western "evidence based practices" have a strong eastern foundation in their mindfulness components. I am direct line Staff, but I also teach Yoga, Improv and Art there as well. A big part of what I try to do with kids is teach them to allow a "big emotion" to pass before acting on it.
As a yoga instructor to these youth I consider myself a skills trainer. We practice breathing and movement exercises and postures when we're in good space, so we can tap the experience later. We rest, even with discomfort or a feeling a posture might mimic in real life, such as restricted breathing in a compression pose, so we can let that feeling wash over us without reacting to it. |
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| You are certainly among friends and others who are dealing with those same difficulties. I have been in a youth residential treatment before because of anxiety and panic disorder. 3 months after the treatment. Our instructor teach us do yoga every morning for anti-stress. I think yoga would be a good idea for this kind of disorder. |
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Member
Posts: 5
| Panic disorder is a kind of anxiety disorder in which anyone has again attacks of acute abhorrence that something bad will action if not expected. The being lives in fear that addition attack will occur. |
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Regular
Posts: 62
| Yoga helps greatly with everything. But healthy whole food meals with lots of nutrients can do wonders. Fitness and spirituality is just one part of the health story, very important is what we put in our bodies. Never underestimate the importance your diet when you are dealing with any mind or body challenges. |
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Veteran
Posts: 210
Location: Fort Worth, Texas | Yoga is for holistic healing thus it is good as well for panic attack. |
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panic attacks
