

How Gymnastics Taught Me to Man Up, Get Tough and Crush Fear - jasonshen
http://www.jasonshen.com/2011/gymnastics-lessons-overcoming-fear/

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michaelochurch
HN effect. Can't get to it. Didn't RTFA, but intend to do so.

What did this for me was Panic Disorder-- not the mild anxiety attacks people
get after 6 cups of coffee, but real panic attacks that throw bizarre and
terrifying symptoms that cause a singular sense of impending doom. Attacks
don't last long but they can mimic (in no particular order) stroke, MS onset,
heart attack, bad trip/drug flashback, vertigo, and cancer symptoms. (Note: if
you have any anxiety disorder, don't watch House.) It's like your body and
brain start trolling the shit out of your mind. Developing it was horrible and
cost me my job and my girlfriend-- but I had a really great job and girlfriend
a year or so later. On the whole, my life is better than when it started.

I don't mean to trivialize PD. Some people crumble when they develop it and
become shut-ins. All mental illnesses are terrifying and awful. I was lucky
enough to have the resources (access to some good doctors, great yoga
teachers, and effective treatments-- a mix of self-directed meditation,
cognitive-behavioral therapy, and medication) to make the problem 1-5% as
severe as what it was when I started. And now I'm actually glad to have had
the experience because (a) it led me to make some very positive lifestyle
changes, such as my conversion to Buddhism, and (b) it has made me less
anxious/fearful overall. The fear that people get when dealing with difficult
people? That's nothing. No, seriously. It's nothing. If I can go from sheer
terror to calmness in four minutes and be fine, I can deal with difficult
social situations, as they say on Reddit, "like a boss". Panic disorder makes
it pretty much impossible for someone to terrify me to even 1/1000 of the
worst extent I've experienced.

That said, I wouldn't advise PD if it were elective. Panic attacks are
harmless but hellish, and having intense negative experiences is generally
considered harmful. Also, the first year is the worst and will generally be
spent on drugs that can take the edge off one's creativity. Still, I came out
of it a better person. I got extraordinarily lucky in terms of the people and
resources I had around me, as well as the relative maturity I had due to the
late age (24) of its onset.

~~~
wil2k
I know all too well what they feel like.. been through years of hell.

What really helped me was learning that what is now labeled as 'panic
disorder', used to be called 'hyperventilation syndrome'.

Cutting some corners here b/c lack of time:

Chronic Hyperventilation is very often connected to panic disorder. Breathing
too much causes some chemical changes in your blood and the rest of the body,
including changing thresholds in your nervous system which makes things more
easily excitable, changes the way electrical signals are working in the body,
etc..

During a period of stress, you can be breathing faster then you used to,
lowering the amount of C02 in your body. If this period is long enough, your
breathing center can be retraining itself so that this 'lower amount' becomes
the 'new normal'. This might keep one hyperventilating, even after the
original stressor(s) is/are gone!

When dealing with many complaints (lack of energy and focus, very tired,
panic, anxiety, stress, body odors, heart palpitations/pounding, headaches,
cold limbs, pressure on chest, gasping for air/yawning, bouts of agoraphobia
and dozens of unpleasant other things) while all blood tests like thyroid,
blood sugar etc came back "Ok", my GP suggested possible hyperventilation.

Well, I was breathing about 15 times/min. at the moment.. which is pretty much
in the 'normal' region as mentioned on Wikipedia (not that this is THE source
for medical advice, but I guess the point is clear)

Later I discovered that I was sometimes breathing 20-25 times/min. at rest..
but not always.. and later that day I stumbled upon a book in a store which
mentioned that "at rest, breathing about 6-8 times/min. is enough"

Ok, 15-16 vs 20 can be a counting error... 20-25 vs 6..well, there's something
odd there.

Took me some months to 'retrain' my breathing and well on my way to
recovering; currently breathing about 8-12 times/min. at rest. And I'm not
using heavy ANY medicines prescribed by the GP. Have only used some very mild
tranquilizing stuff, think natural Valerian based stuff used e.g. by students
for exams.

Very useful for me was the 'Control pause test' of the 'Buteyko approach:

<http://www.normalbreathing.com/index-measure-CP.php>

Check and compare e.g. these two

<http://www.normalbreathing.com/index-CP-normals.php>
<http://www.normalbreathing.com/index-CP-sick-complete.php>

"Take a good deep breath and relax" might sometimes work very well.. but don't
do it too often. ;)

DISCLAIMER:

I apologize to all medical professionals and students for cutting some serious
corners.

What you are reading in this message might actually be wrong. Do your own due
diligence and always discuss things with your doctor/GP/specialist. Especially
if you're also suffering from lung- and/or heart problems.

But I do hope that some people are helped by this message. :)

~~~
wil2k
Oh and I forgot to mention:

\- I also learned that I was frequently hyperventilating in my sleep. My
girlfriend noticed it a few times when she couldn't sleep. This very well
explained why I woke up more tired than how I went to bed, frequently unable
to find the energy to e.g.turn my pillow around.

\- I also read the paraphrased quote somewhere that:

"Breathing 20-25 times/min. is what you do when you're cycling with 15-25KM/h.
No body in the world is strong enough to do that 24/7, day after day, month
after month"

