How to eliminate Numbness

[rejanette]

So I often feel numbness who is pretty much horrible it's part due to hyperventilation I' m trying so hard to get ride of it without any luck
Does any of you have a solution for me...
Please let me know.
My therapist and doctor told me it's due to hyperventilation that I got with anxiety... I would love some feedback about eliminating it.
Rejane

[Giz]

Im sorry to make an assumption, but you do mean physical numbness and not emotional dont you?

If it is physical it may make sense. This is known as the fight or flight response. When this is triggered, breathing becomes more rapid, to increase oxygen intake & the spleen sends out more blood cells to transport this oxygen around the body, this in turn increases heart rate as the blood needs to pump quicker. Blood is diverted away from the skin to support the heart and muscles, leaving the skin cool & clammy. Any non-essential water usage-such as in the mouth, is reduced, resulting in dry mouth & throat, and digestive activity comes to a halt to allow for a quick get away as it were. theres other things that happen in the brain to do with memory & concentration (as in concentration is reduced, even rationality, whereas the long term memory is stimulated to remember the stressor) So long term, this can leave you feeling quite frazzled..
This would be where your hyperventialtion is coming from..

Now, the way to exit the fight or flight response is to literally, catch your breath.. This is obviously quite difficult for you so here are a few tips..

The mechanics of deep breathing..

A lot of people make a mistake. They think that their mouth is for breathing with. Its not. You should breathe through your nose. This way the air is filtered, warmed and moistened before reaching the lungs. Breathing through the mouth can lead to tightness in the chest due to the air being too dry or cold for the lungs.
Also, many of us dont use all of our lung capacity. Below the lungs is a dome shaped muscle called the diaphragm, when you breathe in, this muscle should flatten out, pushing all the organs below (ie the intestines) out, making the abdomen push out. When breathing in, your abdomen should expand before the chest does.

So, bearing that in mind, try taking some deep breaths. Slowly, and through the nose, allowing your lungs to fill completely. Hold it for a few seconds and then breathe out slowly. I often tell people to use a watch with the seconds displayed and to try make each breath in and each breath out last 5 seconds, after a few breaths, try making it 6.. and keep increasing it to the point where is comfortable for YOU. (We all have different lung capacities)

This echoes back to the times when we were cave men, running away from animals to save ourselves, when we got away, we would take some time to catch our breath. This triggers the release of the "anti stress" hormones, allowing the body to return to normal.


Sometimes its just not that simple to get a grip on this breathing malarky.. So heres a few deep breathing aids..

1. Aromatherapy.
The essential oils of Frankincense and Ylang Ylang are known to stimulate deeper breathing. Ylang Ylang also calms and soothes the central nervous system, while Frankincense lends itself better to meditative states.
You can use these oils in several ways. But if you are going to use essential oils please heed the dosage carefully. Essential oils are extremely concentrated, and an overdose is an overdose, it doesnt work better, it actually can cause more problems, so stick to the dosages given for the best results.
a) Put one drop of either of the oils on a tissue and hold to the face, or put a drop of either on a tissue and place it inside your pillowcase going to sleep.
b) Get 30-40ml of a vegetable oil such as grapeseed, sweet almond or coconut oil (if you have a nut allergy naturally you would stay away from nut oils) and add 3 drops frankincense, 3 drops lavender and 2 drops ylang ylang into it and mix it, apply all over as a moisturiser or ask someone to massage it in (or go for a proper aromatherapy massage!)
c) Get some full fat milk (provided you are not lactose intolerant, if you are buy an emulsifier from the chemist) and add to it 2 drops ylang ylang, 2 drops lavender and 2 drops frankincense, and add it to your bath. Use as much milk as you like.
d) using one of those oil burners that has a well of water over a heat source such as a candle, use the same as you would in a bath without the milk.

Obviously if you hate the smell of any of these oils you can rearrange the proportions-but stick to the overall figures (ie, 8 for the oil blend, 6 for the bath or oil burner) and never use more than 2 drops of ylang ylang, its very heady and can cause nausea in large doses.

2. Reflexology
There are specific methods in this therapy for helping to aid deep breathing, specifically work on the solar plexus, diaphragm, lungs, brain and adrenals. It is a very relaxing treatment, provided you can stand having your feet touched!

3. Dietary Changes.
Making some adaptations or changes to your diet can reduce the impact that the stress response has on your body. In the case of stress B vitamins are your best friend, while processed foods high in sugar, fat and salt are your enemy. Try to increase the amount of fresh vegetables, while keeping your fruit intake modest-as its quite sugary. Reduce processed foods, "white" foods like bread, pastry, pasta and opt for the wholegrain variety instead. Cut down on stimulants like caffiene and cigarrettes and stock up on a decent multivitamin (I take 2 Solgar V2000s, 2/3 Calcium Magnesium & Boron, 2g vitamin C with citrus bioflavinoids, and 1g fish oil per day, vitamins in the morning for energy, minerals in the evening to calm & aid sleep)

4. Exercise
When your body sends out all these "stress hormones" (like the famous adrenaline!) its buzzing around your system, and when it goes unused it gets stuck. So getting out there for a walk, or going to the gym, or swimming, running etc burns off all this excess adrenaline-and its very important to do. Because not burning off that adrenaline leaves your muscles tense and knotted, your brain frazzled and your digestion sluggish. It raises your cholesterol levels and generally isnt good, so get out and get active, you have nothing to lose!


If you were talking about mental/emotional numbness I do apologise for wittering on about all this stuff on you and hope someone else can help you. :)

[rejanette]

:)
thank you so0 much for your message... I' m trying as much as i can to get away from process food sugar and stopped putting salt on my food....
I think it's the last part of the anxiety for me my body was such in pain when I had axiety at first that now i noticed more those little things.... I' m tryng to breath from my stomach as well and do relaxation excercices...
I will try aromatherapy as it has worked for me...
Yeap the numbness is physical and it's really a pain.
Thank you

Rejane

[coops025]

Where do you get the numbness? Legs arms etc?

[dtrotter]

Man, i used to have those numbness.. I hate it. Oh well, you can try Reflexology :). There are specific methods in this therapy for helping to aid deep breathing, specifically work on the solar plexus, diaphragm, lungs, brain and adrenals. It is a very relaxing treatment, provided you can stand having your feet touched!

[esjen]

Medications used for high blood pressure can help, but I would probably only use it if its so severe that you can't even taste anything

[Georgec]

The brown bag method is a great way to get rid of that numbness. When a panic attack is triggered you probably are not aware of yourself taking extra deep breaths. These lead to hyperventilation.

usually what ends up happening is that you will notice your numbness and this is what causes you to enter a severe panic attack. Hyperventilation was caused by those deep breaths you took, but those deep breaths were caused by something else. Most people never take the time to think about this trigger. It is hard to find because it is often hidden and hard to find.

You can solve the numbness by holding your breath and allowing the oxygen in your body to be converted to carbon dioxide before taking a new breath.

Realize that the numbness is caused by anxiety but it ends up causing more anxiety. It is a cycle that needs to be broken. You will always feel this numbness unless you find that real trigger.

Thanks,

George.