What do you usually do when you are having an emotional breakdown?

[Auticorn]

Not that I'm looking for new strategies. I'm curious to know what people do to calm themselves. :3

So yeah... when you're dealing with anxiety attack, meltdown, panic attack or emotional overload... whatever you call it, what are some of the things you like to do to calm yourself in these situations?

For me, I will often first take my anti-anxiety meds, then I will do something I find relaxing. Such as playing Pokemon or maybe trying to write in my journal. I also like to do a calming story I write for one of the two Disney parks (Cali or Florida) since I do notice that I find some comfort in that. I also like to do things with my 18 inch dolls if I'm up to that since dressing them or doing their hair is relaxing as well! If any of that fails, I do resort to listening to my hero sing random silly songs he did parodies on about LEGOs. :3 I also do try to reach out to some close friends and chat with them for a while!

 

[RMVNZ]

I mainly start with a deep breath, then prioritize on the now (aka mindfulness).
I scan my surroundings, and then list three things that I can see immediately to ground me to the present moment.
Then I remind myself to take things piece by piece and day by day- and remind myself that in ten years what is causing my breakdown will eventually be forgotten.

 

[Zeostar]

I have General Anxiety Disorder and definitely had my problems with panic attacks for a while.

Incorporating a walk with noise cancelling headphones into my routine was excellent for me. I'm in a nice rural neighborhood so it's peaceful and I don't even have to deal with many interactions. I do take Lexapro at 10MG which is new to me, but the inclusion of getting fresh air and exercise was equally important.

I've found improvement in both social relationships and general well being over the last year or so. It began when I decided I would be more proactive with appointments and more open with my doctor.

 

[forg]

I've been lucky in that the majority of the time I just need to wait for the night to arrive and for the house to get silent. These hours have become my respite that recharge me, in a sense.

Whether it is work, children, or an ex husband that I either pour my time into or push myself to address, once the night knocks at my window I am able to breathe. This is nobody's fault but my own, of course. I blame nobody for the state of my life.

However, sometimes I don't make it until the end of the day. And for those a simple trip to the restroom to lock myself inside and silence the world for ten minutes does it for me. Music used to be my sanctuary, but I've found that these last few months they haven't been able to put me at ease anymore. Instead, I've found myself quite happy writing just… nonsense into a word pad, hah.

 

[ReKoil]

I just isolate myself from everyone and cry if I have to.
I'll bounce back up sooner or later.

 

[Setsuna]

I tend to get hot flushes when my anxiety spikes. And I think that's where I'll start, I think it's really important to be able to notice when something like an anxiety attack or these other things you've mentioned happen, and how you personally react to them.
When I started seriously thinking about and trying to improve and strengthen myself mentally, one of the most important first steps was to be able to properly identify and understand that about yourself. If my hands were shaking or I'd start getting sweats, it became pretty easy for me to think "Okay, clearly something is wrong".
I think the next best thing after identifying it is to reassure yourself. Tell yourself that it's okay to feel that way, and start to ground your thoughts. Be kind to yourself, I've seen people bully themselves over having things like panic attacks (like the whole "I shouldn't be this way, I'm doing this wrong" sort of thoughts) and people don't deserve that, especially if they're already having a hard time. I think both of those allow me to relax and then I can start helping myself better than if I'm trying all these remedies while I'm still panicking.
From there, I have a playlist of relaxing music from games or anime I like, and I'll usually listen to that if I need to collect my thoughts or cry for a while. Crying genuinely helps a lot! If I don't want to listen to music or want more of a distraction and I'm not already in the middle of doing something that I can just go back to, there are videos or playlists on YouTube I'll just lay in bed and watch. Usually it's YouTube videos I have really good memories with from when I was younger, or anime episodes with a really comforting scene or a focus on one of my favourite characters.

I don't mean to be all "What I know is correct and you should do what I say" or whatever! Everyone's different and all.

 

[Harmonie]

Isolation. When I had it happen at my last job, I would run for the restroom, lock myself in a stall, where I was free to cry and make whatever motions I needed to make before I could calm myself down.

I don't know of any techniques, that one is not great. It can be triggered by the simplest of things like my routine at work getting off, so it happens quite often at work, and that's really not a sustainable thing, because normal people don't do that at work! *sigh*

 

[𒈟Lavemu𒐫]

usually makes it harder to hide my feelings when i'm experiencing one, so i have to make sure to smile and act extra happy if there's anyone around me. otherwise if i'm alone which is normally the end of the day when my family is sleeping i can cry underneath my bedsheets until i eventually fall asleep!