The Positive Side of Panic

(This article is an excerpt from Stephen’s ebook, Stop the Panic!)

I used to get really depressed by what most books say about people who suffer from panic attacks, as I once did. Essentially, most described us as defective personalities – overly emotional, overly excitable, highly controlling, obsessive – and a host of other negatives.

With such a negative self-perception, I felt trying to correct my defects was futile, and put all of my effort into merely avoiding panic. Had I held to this view of my personality, I would probably still be suffering from panic disorder and agoraphobia today.

Fortunately, I changed my thinking, and in doing so, changed my life. I stopped the panic when I started understanding my personality gifts and applying them toward positive goals. My recovery from panic disorder and agoraphobia began when I decided to live on the positive side of panic.

Let me explain what I mean.

If you experience panic attacks, you have a uniquely gifted personality. Yes, you read that sentence correctly! The same characteristics that cause your panic are a tremendous source of potential – the raw energies that can lead you to achieve great things.

Consider Charles Darwin, the famous scientist whose theory of natural selection is central to modern evolutionary theory. Though highly intelligent, his panic attacks were frequent and severe. The notebooks from his famous Beagle voyage of 1831 record incidents of blurry vision, tingling sensations in his extremities, faintness, chest pain, and a sense of impending doom.

The emotional sensitivity that made Oscar-award winning actress Kim Basinger a star also led to panic, and kept her housebound with agoraphobia. In Panic, an HBO documentary, Basinger states: "I stayed in my house and literally cried every day. I didn't know what it was. I didn't know how to define it.”

The same ability to turn on the adrenalin for peak performance on the football field contributed to panic attacks for hall-of-famer, Earl Campbell, who had a panic attack while waiting at a stoplight, and another that woke him from his sleep that same night. One of the greatest running backs in the history of football, he was diagnosed with panic disorder and agoraphobia.

Other high-achieving people who suffered from panic and anxiety include scientist Sir Isaac Newton; painter Edvard Munch; psychologist Sigmund Freud; philosopher John Stuart Mill; poet W.B. Yeats; author John Steinbeck; singers Aretha Franklin, Sheryl Crow, and Barbara Streisand; model Naomi Campbell; actors Sir Lawrence Oliver, James Garner, John Candy, Winona Ryder, Drew Barrymore, Sally Field; “Peanuts” cartoonist Charles Schultz; and TV cooking show host Paula Deen.

The personality traits associated with panic and anxiety are the shadowy underside of some powerful abilities and strengths. They are a blessing disguised as a curse.

Here is what you must understand:

• An imagination extraordinary enough to picture panic-producing images can create new ideas and imagine success.
• A strong drive for control can be an asset when focused on self-control.
• What some call perfectionism might also be seen as the driving motivation to achieve high ideals.
• A mind able to analyze and worry about multiple negative outcomes can also think of creative solutions.

Recovering from panic disorder or agoraphobia is not about changing who you are or correcting a dysfunctional personality. Instead, it is about learning how powerful your personality characteristics really are, and how to use that power to create positive results in your life.

The personality traits commonly shared by sufferers of panic attacks can be used to contribute to panic, or contribute to your advantage. In my ebook, Stop the Panic!, you will learn seven ways to use your personality to panic-proof your life and achieve positive goals.