I had a panic attack today in the parking lot at Target. I was alone in the car, waiting for my husband. About two hours ago he apologized for yelling at me and I said that I had forgotten that he yelled at me.
I remembered when he brought it up, though. He yelled at me and then went into Target and I stayed in the car and had a really awful panic attack. And I want to be clear that he SHOULD NOT have yelled at me (even if I WAS being an asshole), but that was not the source of my panic--it was just the very last thing I could deal with.
He thought it was weird that I forgot he yelled at me, but it seemed pretty normal to me. I've dissociated before, but he's not really seen it or recognized when it's happening. My worst dissociations were pre-me-and-him, so he doesn't have a real understanding of it. He also doesn't know how bad the attack was, because I didn't tell him too much about it when he got back in the car. I think he thought the emotion he was seeing was the result of our argument before he got out of the car.
So I've been thinking about how I feel after panic attacks, which is something I've never talked about in therapy. It's always about how you feel before, recognizing what's happening, turning it around. But after, sometimes I feel like I'm about to pass out! I usually get sleepy, physically tired, easily confused.
What do you do to bring yourself back to the world after a panic or anxiety attack? I have a really hard time of it.
I remembered when he brought it up, though. He yelled at me and then went into Target and I stayed in the car and had a really awful panic attack. And I want to be clear that he SHOULD NOT have yelled at me (even if I WAS being an asshole), but that was not the source of my panic--it was just the very last thing I could deal with.
He thought it was weird that I forgot he yelled at me, but it seemed pretty normal to me. I've dissociated before, but he's not really seen it or recognized when it's happening. My worst dissociations were pre-me-and-him, so he doesn't have a real understanding of it. He also doesn't know how bad the attack was, because I didn't tell him too much about it when he got back in the car. I think he thought the emotion he was seeing was the result of our argument before he got out of the car.
So I've been thinking about how I feel after panic attacks, which is something I've never talked about in therapy. It's always about how you feel before, recognizing what's happening, turning it around. But after, sometimes I feel like I'm about to pass out! I usually get sleepy, physically tired, easily confused.
What do you do to bring yourself back to the world after a panic or anxiety attack? I have a really hard time of it.
