Use Your Thinking Brain

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When we feel anxious and panicky, our emotions start to take over and we feel tense, anxious, on edge etc. To calm down these feelings, we need to get the rational, thinking part of our brain working so we can think calmly and clearly. Anxiety and panic are designed to get us ready to take action to keep safe and protect ourselves. The last thing we need to do if we are in danger is have a good think so the emotions and feelings take over and we stop thinking clearly. All the knowledge, logic and perspective we have when we feel calm seems to be out of reach. To get that thinking part of your brain working (which calms the feelings back down), start counting backwards from 300 in units of 3 in your head (i.e. 300...297...294..and so on). If you lose track go back to the beginning and start again. Some people don't like numbers so reciting the alphabet backwards is another option.

What You'll Need

  • To interrupt those anxious thoughts and feelings, and get the thinking part of your brain working, start counting backwards from three hundred in units of three.

What You'll Do

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