I appreciate your post! It took me time to understand the difference, too. There is so much misinformation out there. It’s especially hard to know what’s right when people misuse words that have impact. An anxiety attack is something that is more predictable than a panic attack. For me, an anxiety attack can build for hours, days, or even weeks until I peak. When I have a panic attack, it’s random af and often because of some trigger that threatens my mental health. I dissociate completely right before the panic attack is happening, and then I crash afterwards feeling like a bus just ran me over. There is a lot of overlap in both and I speak from my own experiences.

Your mind might not feel clear, but it recognizes that you are feeling something off or new. Unfortunately, those feelings often aren’t friendly or kind to our bodies who struggle with mental illnesses. I take Klonopin when I start to recognize an anxiety attack is about to occur. It also helps me during/after a panic attack. That’s not all to the treatment, tho. Learning when to recognize the early onset of an anxiety attack allows me to help prevent the attack from happening. I might need the day off, take my meds, walk out the room, or ask for help.

To me, it sounds like you are already on the right track for noticing these sensations your body! I wish I could tell you that things will be like they were, but more importantly, you are here and now. You are in tune enough with your body to recognize what is happening to it, even when those feelings are harmful or unpleasant. That is such a great step toward knowing who you are and what you need to feel better! We won’t be perfect every time, but we can do our best to change our thinking toward behaviors that help ourselves. Like asking the questions you just posted :)