I don't know about you, but sometimes when I'm feeling anxious and I try to take a deep breath, my upper chest tightens, it feels like my esophagus is just not wide enough, and I feel like I'm still not getting enough air so it's a suffocating feeling, and then I get light-headed. Then you start thinking about how you're breathing and then you get even more anxious because what if you're not breathing correctly and then basically, you're just gonna die.
So many of my clients sigh in relief when I share this with them because they get told so often by well-intentioned people to "just breathe. just take some deep breaths." Like, gee thanks Donna, I wonder why I never thought of that!
Sometimes, deep breathing isn't the solution.
If anxiety keeps creeping up on you and it’s starting to make you feel pretty out of control, let’s talk and figure out what works best for you in reducing those symptoms.