Panic and Anxiety can be extremely tough to deal with for both the people experiencing it, and the people around them.

Here are 10 tips and strategies you can use to help effectively support your friends with panic, without panicking yourself.

1. Be informed: Take the time to learn more about anxiety & panic. Be sure to get accurate information from reliable sources.
2. Be empathic: Even if you don’t struggle with anxiety & panic, there is surely something that has had a stronghold on your life at some point. You’ve felt helpless and desperate over something – key into those emotions as a reference point.
3. Know your friend’s goals: It is important to know what your friend wants to accomplish (control the panic, eliminate the panic, survive each panic attack, avoid the panic). You may want something different for your friend, but you won’t be helpful if you are working on YOUR goals for your friend!
4. Provide praise, even for small accomplishments: People with anxiety & panic often overlook their progress. Be genuine, but give praise when it is called for.
5. Encourage your friend’s independence whenever possible: You are not always going to be there to hold your friend’s hand. Be supportive, but don’t take over!
6. Allow your friend to make decisions in anxiety provoking situations: It might be helpful for your friend to decide things like: when to go, when to leave, who is to drive, which restaurant, etc. Feeling safe will allow your friend to take more and more risks over time.
7. Ask simple, yet important questions: When you see that your friend is anxious or panicked, ask: “What can I do for you”. They may not know how to answer, but you may think distracting them will help when what they really need is just your presence.
8. Be reassuring and the voice of reason when he/she is going through a rough spot: When your friend need reassurance keep it simple: “You are okay”, “You will get through this”, “You are not dying”, “This is panic”, “You’ve gotten through this before, and you will this time too”, “This feels awful and scary, but it will end soon”.
9. Be patient, but not enabling: Be supportive to your friend, but always encourage independence in a loving way. Remind yourself that you can be part of the solution, but it is not healthy for either of you to become part of the problem.
10. Know your limits: If you are having a rough day or you are not up for the phone call – don’t take it! You cannot be helpful if you are not prepared to face high emotion. You are of no use to your friend if you burn out. Take care of yourself; you will be a great role model for your friend.

These tips will help you be there for your friend, and help them through the times that they suffer from panic & anxiety attacks.

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