My mother starting getting panic attacks a few months ago.  They are getting worse and they can be pretty severe.  She went to see her doctor but she has never been a big fan of taking medication.  I talked her into doing yoga with me on a regular basis and that seems to help out a bit.  I think that the breathing techniques are what are helping the most.  Whenever she feels a panic attack coming on, she will do some breathing exercises and can sometimes calm herself down before the attack hits.  It actually almost always works when we are at home.  The major problem occurs when we are out somewhere.

When my mom has an attack out in public, she gets so embarrassed.  When she feels one coming on, she is so focused on feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed that she cannot focus on her breathing.  It is getting to the point that she is starting to become afraid to go anywhere because she does not want to have a panic attack in front of other people.

I think that I’m going to start taking her out to places that aren’t crowded just so that she can practice her breathing exercises in a public place.  We’re going to try the library in our little town.  There are hardly ever any people there on a weekday morning.  It will be the perfect place for her to practice out in public without having to be around tons of people.  I just keep trying to be patient and encouraging.  I mean, after all that she has done for me the least that I can do is try my best to help her out with this!

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