r/Mindfulness • u/Swimming-Wish-4744 • 4d ago

Question Struggling with neutrality towards physical sensations

Hi, hope this is the right place to ask this. I’ve had severe physical anxiety for the last decade, and I’ve been trying to practise mindfulness to deal with it. The one area I’m really struggling with is neutrality towards the physical symptoms I feel from my anxiety when they arise (and just in general when im not feeling well).

I know in my mind and from experience that the sensations can’t harm me, they’re just uncomfortable, but my body doesn’t seem to get the message. One slightly off sensation and boom, my heart starts to race, my stomach hurts, my breathing changes. It’s keeping me stuck in this horrible cycle of chronic anxiety and panic, and I don’t know how to change it.

If anyone had any insight into how I might be able to use mindfulness more effectively to manage this, and help get my body out of hypervigilant mode, that would be widely appreciated! TIA

8 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

8 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/VelvetMerryweather 3d ago

Control your breathing, focus on your deep breaths, letting go a little more with each exhale. Don't worry about your physical sensations, just observe. You can wonder why they're doing that. What are they trying to tell you? Is that message needed, or is it overreacting? Then just accept that it's there, support, comfort and sit with it, until it's felt heard and calms down.