oh hey uh hi I'm Dylan just working on some new tricks feels
good to be back out on my board I started having these panic attacks last
year and it totally killed my skills the first time I had a panic attack I was
sitting in math class staring out the window as usual my heart started
pounding I was sweating I felt like I couldn't breathe and I thought I was
having a heart attack dude I was totally freaking out my next
panic attack happened when I was watching a movie in my basement the same
thing my heart started pounding I got really hot and sweaty and felt like
throwing up it freaked me out so much that I had my parents take me to the
hospital because I thought it was dying the attacks happened again and again I
never knew when they would happen or why they were happening I was convinced I
was dying of an incurable disease or something doctors did all kinds of tests
and couldn't find anything wrong with me finally my family doctor told me that I
was having panic attacks and diagnosed me with panic disorder now I'm no
scientist but I do know a thing or two about panic disorder from personal
experience panic disorder happens when your brain overreacts to your
environment and sends your body into panic mode think of it this way the
brain is like a control center and this little guy will call him Norman a high
Meyer he's in charge he takes in the sights smells sounds and other messages
from outside my body and then decides what to do with those messages my brain
has a special alarm bell he rings in case of danger if any danger is present
Norman presses a set of controls that put in place a chain reaction to get me
ready to fight the danger her run for safety for example let's say I come
face-to-face with a martial arts ninja this guy rings the alarm bell and
presses controlled which set into motion a whole bunch of processes that get me
ready to fight or run he pumps blood to my muscles and heightens my senses my
heart rate goes up and I'm ready for anything
key word here adrenaline now when the martial arts ninja is there the body's
response is helpful in panic disorder the little guy goes overboard and begins
to sense a threat when note his present normal things sent him in
the panic mode he rings the alarm bell and sends the messages to the body that
there's danger but then the body is confused because it has all these
sensations and there is no danger when this happens it's a panic attack man I
had to get rid of these panic attacks they were totally messing with my life I
started avoiding crowded places or stressful situations because I was
afraid I'd have another panic attack my family doctor sent me to a psychologist
the psychologist and I started doing something called cognitive behavioral
therapy at first I could not figure out what this therapist was talking about
half the time he asked me about my thoughts and feelings not my usual thing
to say the least but then I got the point the therapist
had me tell him how my body felt when I started to panic
next the therapist had me tell him what I would think once my body started
overreacting I would usually think things like there's something really
wrong with me or I'm having a heart attack or I'm going to die or I'm losing
my mind the therapist said these thoughts made the panic worse seems
pretty obvious now but at the time I really thought it was done it took a
while but I learned to recognize the signs of panic I started to change my
thoughts and would say okay Dylan you're having a panic attack
take deep breaths and this will pass the more panic attacks I lived through and
overcame the less scary they were and eventually they just sort of went away
good thing too because while I was sidelined with panic perhaps last year
my friends were all out here boarding by the way I'd invent a new trick that I
like to call the Norman it really gets the heart pumping
panic disorder is a real medical condition and you are so when you don't
have panic disorder plus their doctor and ask for help you could also visit
this website to learn more about panic disorder have your belly your w5t mental
health or