It can be something that seems very threatening like giving a speech in front of a crowd, or it can seem as innocuous as going to the grocery store to pick up staples.
It starts differently maybe sometimes. There’s a thought. God, look at all these people. Oh my God, I can’t breathe, I can’t do this.
Then maybe your palms start to sweat or you feel way overheated in the car, only the thing is, the heat isn’t on and it’s freezing outside. The thoughts start building up in your head until it feels like it’s going to explode. Then the hyperventilating starts. That’s fun. Try having someone suck all the air out of your head, only you’re still breathing in and breathing out. You’re sure you’re going to have a heart attack. This is it. You wish you had told your mom/wife/husband/kids you loved them.

Then…..amazingly…you live. You don’t have a heart attack, your breathing slows down eventually, your heart stops pounding like a hammer.

Now you know what it’s like to survive a panic attack.