Panic Attacks, Frustration and Meister Eckhart

February 4, 2024

Panic attacks

Topic submitted by: Sofia L. from Paris, France

I’ve only ever had one real panic attack in my life, and it came after eating a marijuana edible and reading a book on ecological collapse.

It was not fun.

Hyperventilation (rapid breathing during a panic attack) depletes the body of its carbon dioxide, which is what causes the light-headedness, temperature fluctuations, and worst-case scenario thoughts.

This is why brown paper bags are given to people having panic attacks — bags help recycle CO2 so that you don’t waste it all.

Practice

It’s counterintuitive, but moments of anxiety — both major or minor episodes — can be immediately reduced by holding your breath.

Try these steps the next time you’re feeling any kind of anxiety:

Inhale through your nose for 5 seconds
Slowly exhale out of your mouth until you have almost no air in your lungs
Close your mouth, plug your nose tightly, and hold your breath
When you feel the urge to breathe, slowly count to 5 before returning to step 1 — repeating as many times as it takes to calm down

I feel so frustrated by people...

Topic submitted by: Gregory L. from Huntersville, NC

Most people assume their mind works in two steps:

(1) You see, hear, taste, smell or touch something “out there”, and then (2) you generate an emotional response to it.

For instance, you (1) smell delicious food and then (2) you crave it.

Any experienced meditator will tell you this is not actually what happens — there is a third step.

(1) You first see, hear, taste, smell or touch something “out there,” then (2) you create a story about it, and then (3) you generate an emotional response to the story you created.

In the above example, (1) you smell something, then (2) you create a story about it being delicious food, and then (3) you crave it.

Do you see the subtle difference?

You never actually react to “objective reality”. Instead, you only ever react to your idea of objective reality.

In your case, you aren’t actually frustrated by people. You’re frustrated by the story you tell yourself about people.

Understanding this distinction can give way to inner peace, because it’s possible to change your story and therefore change how you feel about what’s happening “out there”.

So the next time you feel that way towards someone, notice what story you’re telling yourself about them. From there, just tweak your story so that you feel more at ease.

“If the only prayer you ever said was thank you, that would be enough.” — Meister Eckhart

Quote submitted by: Yazmin R. from Charlotte, NC

Growing up Christian, I struggled with prayer.

“Who am I talking to,” I would wonder. “How is this helping,” I would think. “Why the heck would God care about little ol’ me?”

That all changed when I got into yoga and meditation.

When the mind is quiet, you realize a few things:

You are in a deep, intimate connection with a Universe that actually cares about your well-being.
It really matters what you think, because your thoughts affect reality.
Your intentions are as important as the actions associated with them.

Now, hold on…

Most people think prayer is about asking for what you want, but this is not so.

Prayer — in its purest form — is about gaining clarity on how to become the best possible version of yourself. It is a tool for gaining courage and releasing attachments.

And that’s why thank you is the only prayer you need. Thank you assumes you already have what you need, which drops you into a state of reception for clear guidance to come through.