“Anxiety is not you, it is something that passes you by. It can leave the same door it came in.” ~ James Clear
Last year I was panicking while driving across a bridge and I thought I might die that day.
Suddenly my heart started beating fast. My breath was shallow and tight. My chest felt tight and dizzy waves hit me.
I was driving sixty miles an hour and there was nowhere to drag. The bridge stretched for miles, hung on open water, and I was alone in the car.
A horrible thought entered my heart:
Something is seriously wrong.
I took the steering wheel and tried to drive, confident that I might cross before reaching the other side.
At that moment, it felt like my body had completely betrayed me.
After a while, I was afraid to drive and lived quietly, afraid that the feeling would return.
I started avoiding certain activities and situations. I constantly monitored my body for signs that another attack might be imminent. Even when I show calmness outside, my part is always very careful.
If you have Experienced panic attackYou probably know this feeling well.
Heart racing. Dizziness. The sudden feeling that something terrible is about to happen.
It’s not just uncomfortable – it’s scary.
And most panic-stricken people believe the same thing I did:
Something must be wrong with my body.
But what I learned eventually changed everything.
The body is not the enemy.
The first thought that really changed everything for me was this: a feeling of panic. Feel Dangerous, but they are not.
They are your nervous system that sounds the alarm.
When we perceive danger, the body reacts to natural survival known as combat or flight. Adrenaline floods the bloodstream, makes the heart beat faster, breathes faster and the muscles ready to react.
This response evolved to keep people alive.
If our ancestors encountered threats such as running away from predators, their bodies needed immediate reaction. When the nervous system is controlled, the metabolic response will push the body back to its natural state of calm once the threat has passed.
However, if the nervous system is under stress for a long time, it becomes unbalanced. The combat or flight response is running on excessive driving, and the remaining response and dissolution is no longer functioning properly. The body does not rest.
Result: The nervous system sometimes beeps this alarm even when there is no real danger.
This is true for me. I am a single parent living in San Francisco running a wedding photography business (hello very stressful career).
I’m in the car dealing with crazy traffic for hours every day: a two-hour commute to take my daughter to and from school, customer meetings, evening engagement photography…
I take wedding photos on most weekends, leaving three to four hours early because wedding photographers are not allowed to be late. Ever.
Relaxation is what I dream about. I was exhausted, constantly on fire, at the edge, and there was no end in sight. So yes, my nervous system is basically fried, which means my panic attacks are more frequent.
I live in fear of the next attack.
When the body releases adrenaline unexpectedly, emotions can feel overwhelming.
Many people interpret these feelings as signs of disaster.
Am I having a heart attack?
Am I about to fall?
Am I losing control?
Those thoughts create more fear, which triggers the body to release adrenaline.
And so a cycle creates:
Feelings → Fear → More adrenaline → Feeling stronger.
It can feel trapped in a circle of panic that you can not escape.
A change that changes everything
My treatment did not start with trying to control my panic.
It started with awareness.
For the first time, I noticed that my body was not functioning properly. It responds exactly to the way it is designed to respond.
My nervous system is just learning to be very careful.
As that understanding settled, something soft but powerful changed.
Panic attacks are still uncomfortable, but they no longer feel like evidence of a catastrophe.
They become a sign of a nervous system that has been under too much stress for too long.
And the nervous system can learn new patterns.
Learn safety again
I have learned that panic therapy is not about physical force. Quiet.
Of course, the fight against emotions always makes them stronger.
Instead, this process involves helping the nervous system regain a sense of security.
Sometimes it seems like slow breathing. I practice a simple breathing technique that I call “four or six breaths.” You close your eyes, then inhale to four and then exhale to six.
Prolonged breathing slows your heart rate and sends a message to the nervous system: “We are fine.” This activates the response and metabolism and the body relaxes.
Sometimes it means letting emotions pass without resisting them. The feeling of panic attack may be uncomfortable or intense, but it is not dangerous. Once I understood this simple fact, it was easier with the feeling that they came and went like waves.
Sometimes it is just learning to believe that the body knows how to get back into balance. Healing is not an immediate event, but a gradual process. As my panic attacks got shorter and less intense, I felt more confident because I knew exactly what to do to take care of myself.
They eventually left and never returned.
Some people believe that panic attacks are incurable, but I have found that this is not true.
With practice, the nervous system learns new patterns and begins to recognize that alarms are no longer necessary.
Fewer responses.
Shorter sessions.
Eventually, many people realize that the cycle of panic is completely gone.
Different relationships with the body
My panic attacks were so severe that I was afraid to drive for years. Today, I drive without fear, traveling the streets has become a favorite pastime and meditation experience. This past summer, I drove more than 3,500 miles around the country on my own.
I travel the world with confidence in my body that used to feel impossible.
What I discovered during my healing process eventually became the foundation of a new lifestyle:
Listen to my body signals rather than refuse.
Prioritize rest Because it is an important ingredient of health.
Discover my deep wisdom and ability to maintain my energy, strength, and well-being.
A collection of tools and practices that allow me to be peaceful and basic no matter what happens in my life.
A calm, confident and happy person that I want to be.
Because the truth is:
If you experience a panic attack, your body is not damaged.
It is trying to protect you.
Sometimes healing begins not by fighting what we feel, but by realizing it – and in that awareness the body will gradually remember how to feel safe again.
About Grier Cooper
Grier Cooper is an anxiety coach with injury information and the creator of The Panic-Free Formula. She helps high-functioning women reorganize their nervous system behind anxiety and panic so they can feel safe, stable and fully present. A former professional ballet dancer, she brings compassionate and physical therapy. Her work focuses on transforming fear into safety and helping women regain inner peace and confidence. Download her free 3-Minute Panic Reset at GrierCooper.com.
