Learn to OBSERVE rather than ‘react’ to the panic
3. See sensations as JUST sensations..
When we focus on sensations we often misinterpret and catastrophise.
However, if we try to block out the sensations we still have the fear of them in the ‘back of our mind’.
Mindfulness enables us to experience the sensations without adding further (mis) interpretation and this helps to desensitise us TO the sensation because we see that nothing else is happening.
EXAMPLE
SENSATION – Tingling in fingers / arm – we either worriedly focus our attention on the tingling which intensifies it – or we try to block it out by focussing elsewhere – but the fear remains.
MINDFULNESS – We allow ourself to experience the tingling as PART of our overall experience – we try not to judge it as good or bad but just OBSERVE it as simply (unpleasant but harmless) sensation thus reducing the fear.
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