Regaining control of breathing

[Peak]

This is something that keeps happening to me. At times of stress and anxiety my breathing changes where I no longer take normal breaths but shallow ones and more frequently with the following results:

1. I frequently feel short of breath or to put it more accurately, that I need to take an extra breath.

2. My diaphragm doesn't move at all.

3. Every few minutes I feel the need to burp to release trapped wind in my chest.

4. I get an upset stomach

Whilst I can physically slow my breathing down I.e. I don't actually need more oxygen, doing so causes he feeling of panic to increase. Essentially it feels like I'm being smothered most of the time. This is a feeling that lasts all day, every day and can last for days or weeks until I forget about my breathing and it naturally returns to its normal rate.

I've tried various breathing exercises like slow deep breaths filling all the lung and moving the diaphragm, holding the breath for a few seconds, releasing the breath slowly etc but I find that I can't do this for long as the feeling of panic becomes too strong. The only respite I get is when I fall asleep or if I am able to do something that completely absorbs me but then as soon as I realise I'm not doing it anymore I start doing it again.

Anyone else experience this or know how to forget about your breathing etc? This has been going on for over a week now and it's driving me insane.

[Brian1992]

This is something that keeps happening to me. At times of stress and anxiety my breathing changes where I no longer take normal breaths but shallow ones and more frequently with the following results:

1. I frequently feel short of breath or to put it more accurately, that I need to take an extra breath.

2. My diaphragm doesn't move at all.

3. Every few minutes I feel the need to burp to release trapped wind in my chest.

4. I get an upset stomach

Whilst I can physically slow my breathing down I.e. I don't actually need more oxygen, doing so causes he feeling of panic to increase. Essentially it feels like I'm being smothered most of the time. This is a feeling that lasts all day, every day and can last for days or weeks until I forget about my breathing and it naturally returns to its normal rate.

I've tried various breathing exercises like slow deep breaths filling all the lung and moving the diaphragm, holding the breath for a few seconds, releasing the breath slowly etc but I find that I can't do this for long as the feeling of panic becomes too strong. The only respite I get is when I fall asleep or if I am able to do something that completely absorbs me but then as soon as I realise I'm not doing it anymore I start doing it again.

Anyone else experience this or know how to forget about your breathing etc? This has been going on for over a week now and it's driving me insane.

The best way to reset breathing is through exercise. I understand it's hard to workout when your anxious tho.. That's why you have to do it at a time when your not anxious. Me personally I had to wait for my anxiety meds to kick in until I could start working out.. As soon as I felt better I immediately started running / weightlifting and I never had breathing problems again.

When I have times where I feel like I'm having troubles breathing or I feel like I can't get a nice breath I just focus on a game on my phone that is fun and takes a lot of thinking. By time I know it I'm breathing normally again and I feel better. Good pump music helps aswell.

[Dahila]

yOu could do some breathing exercises ( tons on youtube) and get the idea, shortness of breath and high heartbeat is manageable with some exercise. Meditation is another thing which help a lot with breathing, I would check with doc, maybe you have asthma

[Peak]

Cheers all. It's been a bit better over the weekend, I thought it had passed at one point yesterday but it's back again today. It's a weird feeling that I can't quite explain. It feels as though I need to take an extra breath, like I didn't get enough oxygen with the previous breath, when actually I don't in that if I deliberately choose to not take a breath at all, the feeling usually passes and I'm not gasping for air. There is a constant and strong feeling of panic but I can't tell if the panic is causing the breathing or the breathing is causing the panic. It almost always happens when I'm moving around but also frequently happens when sitting down just not quite as often so it isn't related to activity and this weekend I have been on my feet most of both days and the feeling largely went away. My heart rate doesn't really increase nor does my blood pressure but there is a constant ball of tension on my sternum and this strong fight or flight feeling. It's been a week now and this feeling the need to take an extra breath happens every few seconds. I don't feel weak, light headed or anything like that it's just a feeling like I'm being smothered and can't quite catch my breath and it's driving me insane!!