Panic attacks are one of the most frightening experiences a person can have and one of the most manageable, once you know what’s actually happening and have a clear technique ready.

What’s Actually Happening

A panic attack is a sudden, intense experience of extreme anxiety, producing symptoms like breathlessness, a racing heart, dizziness, shaking, and a sense of unreality. It distorts thinking as well as the body, heightening negative thoughts, filtering out anything reassuring, and provoking catastrophising or all-or-nothing thinking. The first and most important thing to remember is this: nothing dangerous is actually happening. It feels like a heart attack or suffocation, but it isn’t. It will pass.

The EGO Technique

When the body is in a heightened state, it’s very difficult to think your way out of anxiety. The priority is helping the body feel calmer and safer first. A simple three-step technique, Exhale, Ground, Orientate, offers a practical way through.

Exhale. Bring the heart rate down by elongating the out-breath. Sit up straight, open the shoulders, and breathe in normally before extending the exhale as long as comfortably possible. Repeat for three to five minutes.

Ground. Bring attention back to the body. Notice points of contact with the floor or chair. Start at the toes and gradually move attention upward, noticing sensations in each area and softening any tension, particularly common areas like the jaw, forehead, shoulders, or stomach.

Orientate. Move focus outward to the surrounding environment. Notice sounds nearby. Pick an object and describe it in detail, its weight, texture, colour. This simple act of noticing pulls attention out of internal panic and back into present, external reality.

Why This Sequence Works

Each step targets a different part of the panic response, physiological (exhale), somatic (ground), and cognitive (orientate), working together to interrupt the spiral rather than fighting it directly. Once calmer, it’s often possible to reflect on what triggered the episode, whether a situation, feeling, object, or person.

Making This Available to Others

Anyone can learn this technique, and having it written down somewhere accessible, a wallet card, a note in a phone, a printed sheet in a quiet room, means it’s there exactly when it’s needed most, without requiring memory to function perfectly under stress.

At Calm Nest Collective, we include grounding tools like this in every Calm Nest Space® we design, because sometimes the most valuable thing a space can offer is simply a clear, calm technique within reach.

Equip your spaces with tools people can actually use. [Talk to Calm Nest Collective →]