@anxiety_fitness
Anxiety FitnessPeople often imagine panic attacks as something obvious. Shouting for help. Hyperventilating. Shaking. Falling to the ground. But that isn’t always how they show up. According to the DSM-5*, a panic attack is defined by a **sudden surge of intense fear or discomfort**, accompanied by **4 or more** of the following symptoms: Racing or pounding heart Shortness of breath or feeling smothered Chest pain or tightness Dizziness or feeling faint Nausea or stomach distress Sweating or chills Trembling (sometimes internal, not visible) Numbness or tingling Feeling unreal or detached Fear of losing control Fear of dying What’s important to notice is that many of these symptoms are internal. From the outside, you might look calm. You might be smiling, nodding, carrying on a conversation. Meanwhile, inside your body, you can be genuinely convinced that something catastrophic is happening — that this might be the end. That’s how many of my panic attacks were. Quiet. Invisible. And just as intense as the ones people expect to see. So if you’ve ever felt dismissed because you “didn’t look anxious,” please know this: Panic attacks don’t need to look dramatic to be real. And suffering silently doesn’t make them any less valid. If panic attacks are something you’re dealing with, I’ve created a free binaural anxiety and panic attack talk-down and guided meditation to help you through those moments when your nervous system is in overdrive. You’re not weak for experiencing this. Your body is responding to fear — and there are ways to support it through the storm. *American Psychiatric Association (APA). *Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders*. 5th ed, text revision. Washington, D.C.; 2022
On the profile · Jan 9, 2026