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Panic Attacks & Heart Palpitations? Soothe Your Nervous System Back With This Simple Acupressure Technique
Whether you're having a full-blown panic attack or just some little heart palpitations due to an upset at work, anxiety is an unpleasant condition that usually surprises you with the worst timing. And you're not the only one who's suffering; generalized anxiety disorder is the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 40 million adults in the country—although only 36 percent of those actually seek treatment. At my acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine practice, I see countless patients struggling with these exact symptoms.
Treating panic attacks and heart palpitations with TCM.
Despite its widespread prevalence, generalized anxiety disorder does not receive the same attention as other major syndromes like depressive and psychotic disorders, and because of this, the primary care physician is usually the treatment provider, which poses some key problems. Under the care of a primary care physician, patients with anxiety frequently feel misunderstood and aren't given the lifestyle tools, behavioral therapy, and complementary and alternative medicine options to heal their condition naturally. Instead, they are typically prescribed medication as a singular solution. Anxiety disorders that progress uncontrolled can be said to account for decreased productivity and have also been linked1 to alcohol and drug abuse in a large segment of the population.
Now for the good news: Acupuncture and Chinese medicine have effectively treated anxiety for centuries due to its ability to individualize treatment and address the "Shen" (the Chinese word for "spirit"), which is a large part of the puzzle Western medicine often misses. In Chinese medicine, anxiety can be due to a number of different factors, like blood deficiency (think dizziness and anemia), stagnation in your liver or blood (think about when you're so angry you could cry), or a deficiency in the chi of your heart (think heart palpitations, nothing serious but still ruins your day)—just to name a few. Whatever the pathology, an experienced traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioner is able to diagnose your condition using a combination of different skills, then work on rebalancing what is out of whack in your body to calm your nervous system and your Shen.
Acupressure points for panic attacks and heart palpitations.
Ready for some more good news? Because we acupuncturists are just full of cool tips and tricks, by knowing some key Shen calming points and breathing techniques, you can calm an acute anxiety attack yourself! Here's a little acupressure recipe to help you calm and center yourself when confronted with shock or trauma or in a moment of anxiety. Stimulate each of those points for 60 to 90 seconds with moderate pressure using your finger, then move to the next one in the cycle.
Kidney 27: This point is located on the lower border of the clavicle, two finger widths lateral to the middle of your chest (you can see a visual representation here). This point is meant to open and relax the chest, calm anxiety, and improve breathing.
Yin Tang: This point is located between the medial ends of the eyebrows (you can see the exact spot here). Stimulating this point will calm the spirit and help reduce insomnia, anxiety, and stress.
Heart 7: Located at the wrist crease, the function of this point is to reduce physical responses to emotional trauma. It can be very helpful for my patients with heart palpitations, nausea with panic, or fear.
If you're not exactly sure where to start, you can watch this video and put those points to use next time you are feeling anxious, panicky, or flustered. They'll calm you down, settle your nervous system, and rebalance your chi until you can get to your next acupuncture appointment.
