Finding Peace in the Present: Mindfulness and Grounding Techniques for Conquering Anxiety and Panic Attacks

In today’s fast-paced and demanding work environments, the prevalence of anxiety and panic attacks among employees has become a pressing concern. The workplace, often a hub of productivity and achievement, can simultaneously foster an atmosphere that triggers stress, leading to a range of mental health challenges.

Anxiety disorders and panic attacks, in particular, can significantly impact an individual’s ability to perform optimally, affecting productivity, focus, and overall well-being.

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), anxiety disorders affect 40 million adults in the United States aged 18 and older, which is around 18.1% of the population every year.

While this number seems staggering, I would like to take a moment to opine on a couple of things related to anxiety and panic attacks, which may not represent the popular opinion. I am OK with that and would value the dialogue if you have a different opinion…other than a simple comment that I am wrong.

Stress and Anxiety

Before discussing anxiety, we need to discuss stress. Stress is a physiological state resulting from an outside stimulus or circumstance, and it can be a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances.

When a lioness is chasing an antelope (because, let’s face it, the females do most of the hunting), the antelope is stressed…their heart is pounding, and they are hypervigilant and focused only on safety. Biologically speaking, there is so much happening within that antelope, with adrenaline and cortisol being released into their system to aid their escape and other processes that a doctor could better explain.

The main point is that their body is doing its job by releasing hormones that will help the antelope to survive. Our bodies do the same thing. When we are feeling pressure or stress from a demanding situation at work, like meeting a critical deadline, our bodies release hormones that help us overcome the challenges we face. I want you to hold onto that feeling of hyper-alertness for a minute because we are getting ready to shift gears.

Anxiety is a “feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome,” that is driven by an assessment of our ability or inability to meet the difficult challenge before us. For example, if I get an unexpected bill in the mail for $1,000 and I only have $200 in my account, I am going to feel some pressure or stress to pay the bill because of the assessment that I made about having insufficient funds in my account. If, on the other hand, I have $100,000 in my account (it’s probably somebody else’s account), my assessment of the situation is that I have the money, so it’s not a big deal.

As trauma survivors, there may be many records in our experiential database (hippocampus) of insufficient funds/resources that we had as a child, and those may be the first records that are retrieved when our bodies experience similar sensations.

The metadata (emotions, bodily sensations, thoughts, beliefs, etc.) associated with that experience may feel so real that you perceive it is happening again or are in some sort of a time warp, but you aren’t…it is a powerful memory from your database of past experiences.

The key to moving through that is to remind yourself that it is a memory and is not happening now. Once you do that, you can put a little distance between the past and present experience.

When this happens to me, I validate that younger part of me by acknowledging that she did not have the resources required to deal with that situation when it happened, but that was then, and this is now. As an adult, I have the resources I need for this situation, so I will handle it, and you can go back to being a kid.

I can go back to my experiential database and select records from my experiences as an adult when I handled similar situations just fine and remind myself that “I’ve got this.”

Insufficient Funds

There is another scenario that can cause the error code of “insufficient funds.” It often happens when you have too much on your plate, multiple competing priorities at work and home, and you are not depositing self-care credit into your account in the form of proper sleep, exercise, or nutrition. If you continuously find yourself operating outside your tolerance window and don’t take the time to contribute to the account, you will not have the sufficient funds or resources that you need to handle challenging situations.

Every time you make the time to do self-care, you are putting resource credit in your account to draw from when they are needed the most. This will not happen on its own…you have to be intentional about it. You need a strategy…like a savings strategy when you are saving up to buy a car or house. Create a plan. Put it in writing. Get an accountability partner.

Mindfulness and Grounding Techniques as Self-Care Credit

Mindfulness and grounding techniques can be effective tools for managing anxiety and panic attacks.

Here are ten tips to help you incorporate these practices into your life:

1. Deep Belly Breathing: Start with deep, diaphragmatic breathing. Inhale slowly through your nose, allowing your abdomen to rise. Exhale slowly through your mouth, feeling your abdomen fall. This deep breathing helps calm the nervous system.
2. Stay Present: Practice mindfulness by focusing on the present moment. Pay attention to your breath, the sensations in your body, or the sounds around you. Whenever your mind starts to wander, gently bring it back to the present.
3. Grounding Objects: Carry a small, portable grounding object, like a smooth stone or a piece of fabric. When you start to feel anxious, hold the object and focus on its texture, temperature, and weight to bring your attention back to the present.
4. 5–4–3–2–1 Technique: Name five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. Engaging your senses in this way helps anchor you in the moment.
5. Mindful Walking: Take a slow, mindful walk. Pay close attention to each step, the feeling of your feet connecting with the ground, and the sensation of movement. This can be done indoors or outdoors.
6. Body Scan: Close your eyes and mentally scan your body from head to toe. Notice any areas of tension or discomfort and consciously release that tension as you go.
7. Square Breathing: Inhale for a count of four, hold for a count of four, exhale for a count of four, and pause for a count of four. Repeat this square breathing pattern several times to regulate your breath and calm your mind.
8. Guided Mindfulness Meditation: Use guided meditation apps or recordings to lead you through mindfulness exercises. These can be especially helpful if you’re new to mindfulness practices.
9. Positive Affirmations: Create and repeat positive affirmations to counter anxious thoughts. For example, “I am safe,” “I am in control,” or “This too shall pass.”
10. Mindfulness Apps: There are many mindfulness and meditation apps available that offer guided exercises, daily reminders, and progress tracking. Consider using one of these apps to incorporate mindfulness into your routine.

It’s important to note that consistency is key when practicing mindfulness and grounding techniques. Regular practice can help build resilience and make these tools more effective over time.

As always, you do not have to walk this journey alone. Contact me to schedule your free discovery call.

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Photo by Tj Holowaychuk on Unsplash