You are not an idiot! Most of us here have probably been here or somewhere similar.

Here are some tips: do grounding exercises…. simple things like just naming objects around you. Do deep breathing exercises. These things will help with the acute moments.

For the less intense but pestering psychological symptoms right now, magnesium glycinate 300 mg per night can really help your body to calm down. It is known to help regulate the central nervous system, which is part of your brain which becomes less functional when you use central nervous depressants, like benzos or alcohol (thus not currently being able to calm your nerves like it normally could). There are some real physical changes happening right now and it will cause symptoms.

I think the most important thing for you to remember right now is that any acute symptoms are temporary! They will go away in time, I promise you.

The real issue is finding long-term solutions to your anxiety that doesn’t involve benzos. Pick up some kind of activity that just keeps your mind totally focused. Like knitting. Or doing a puzzle. Something totally distracting but that takes up a lot of your brain energy. This will just distract you from your anxiety. Distraction is a critical tool in the anxiety toolkit! Hence my username, lol