Sandra Scheinbaum - Stop Panic Attacks in 10 Easy Steps: Using Functional Medicine to Calm Your Mind and Body with Drug-Free Techniques

Stop Panic Attacks in 10 Easy Steps

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Stop Panic Attacks in 10 Easy Steps

Using Functional Medicine to Calm Your Mind and Body with Drug-Free Techniques

SANDRA SCHEINBAUM

LONDON AND PHILADELPHIA

Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this book is correct, but it should not in any way be substituted for medical advice. Readers should always consult a qualified medical practitioner before adopting any complementary or alternative therapies. Neither the author nor the publisher takes responsibility for any consequences of any decision made as a result of the information contained in this book.

First published in 2015

by Singing Dragon

an imprint of Jessica Kingsley Publishers

73 Collier Street

London N1 9BE, UK

and

400 Market Street, Suite 400

Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA

www.singingdragon.com

Copyright Sandra Scheinbaum 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing it in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright owner except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 610 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Applications for the copyright owners written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publisher.

Warning: The doing of an unauthorised act in relation to a copyright work may result in both a civil claim for damages and criminal prosecution.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Scheinbaum, Sandra.

Stop panicking in 10 easy steps : a practical guide / Sandra Scheinbaum.

pages cm

ISBN 978-1-84819-246-1 (alk. paper)

1. Panic disorders--Treatment. I. Title.

RC535.S34 2015

616.85223--dc23

2014033804

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN 978 1 84819 246 1

eISBN 978 0 85701 192 3

Contents

Acknowledgments

To the leaders in functional medicine, including Dr. Jeffrey Bland, Dr. David Jones, and Dr. Mark Hyman: thank you for your wisdom and continuing inspiration.

To my students in the Masters Program in Nutrition and Functional Medicine at the University of Western States: thank you for being my teachers as we explore the psychology of wellbeing, principles of mind-body medicine, and the psychology of eating.

To my editors at Singing Dragon: thank you for seeing the value of this book and for all your assistance and guidance.

To the hundreds of clients Ive seen over the years: thank you for sharing your stories and partnering with me to overcome panic and anxiety.

Finally, thanks to Alan, Laura, Carly, and Keith for the joy, laughter, harmony, and balance you bring to my life. Keep singing, dancing, hooping, and creating beautiful music.

PREFACE

My Personal Journey from Anxious to Calm

Calm down!

Get a hold of yourself.

Whats wrong with you?

Chill out!

Stop panicking!

Just relax!

Snap out of it!

If only snapping out of it was simple. It isnt. But with patience combined with lots of practice, youll stop panic and anxiety. By learning 10 simple steps, youll experience profound changes in a short period of time. Youll stop anxious feelings from escalating into full-blown panic mode. If youve been consumed by panic and worrisome thoughts, youll enjoy life again.

Why do I believe so strongly that you can stop panicking in 10 easy steps? Because what Im teaching you stems from my personal experience. I used to have severe panic attacks and learned how to completely stop them. I didnt use one of the commonly prescribed anti-anxiety drugs. Nor did I engage in lengthy talk therapy. Instead, I incorporated the 10 steps outlined in this book and, by doing so, my life completely changed. I went from anxious to calm.

Anxiety started way back in early childhood. When other children went happily off to kindergarten without even glancing back at their parents, I remember crying and wanting my mother. While my peers were learning to ride bicycles, I never even felt comfortable with training wheels. Worried that I would fall, no one could persuade me to take that leap of faith and pedal on my own. Learning to swim? Forget about it! When my mother enrolled me in a class at a local community center, I watched as, one by one, the other kids doggie-paddled away from the edge of the pool and soon became happy little guppies. Not me. Filled with terror, I didnt let go for dear life. What if I sank to the bottom? Too risky to take a chance, I remained with feet firmly planted until the class was over. Roller blade? Ice skate? No way! Held back by anxiety, I preferred less risky activities like coloring and playing with dolls.

Because my father died suddenly when I was nine, I used to worry that something would happen to my mother and I would end up in an orphanage. As a latch-key kid, I would stand at the window and watch for her to come home from work. If even a few minutes passed after the time she was supposed to arrive, I imagined all sorts of horrific scenarios. What if shed had an accident? What if she was in the hospital?

In high school I worried constantly about performing well in tests and earning top grades. This is what my classmates wrote about me at graduation: Can you imagine Sandra doing a commercial for Compoz? (This was an over the counter anti-anxiety agent at the time.)

Why was I such a nervous wreck? Lets start with my mother: a born worrier, just like her own mother and sister. For years I assumed that I had inherited her anxiety gene, and therefore change wasnt possible. What about stressful life events? Couldnt my anxiety be attributed to losing my father at an early age? Certainly that trauma didnt help, but I exhibited signs of anxiety years before his death. So what else was going on? Maybe it wasnt all due to bad genes or childhood trauma. Maybe there were other factors at play. When the body becomes out of balance, how can the mind stay calm? From infancy on, all signs pointed to significant imbalances. Bottle-fed and colicky as a baby, I also suffered from frequent ear infections, tonsillitis, and bladder infections as a young child, necessitating course after course of antibiotics. My favorite meals consisted of bologna slices on white bread or buttered noodles, plus frequent treats of cookies, candy, and ice cream.