Panic Attacks Are F.U.N.!

Ok, so the last week or so I've started being really short of breath - like I have a heavy weight on my chest that won't go away. Coincidentally this said shortness of breath is particularly apparent when I am at work or thinking about work.
I sort of just assumed it was that I'm getting sick as I have been a little unwell lately but this morning while lying in bed I felt like an extra-large dog was sitting directly on my chest. So I started breathing more frequently and shallow and the next thing I know I can't breath properly i.e. hyperventilating and THEN I started thinking about all the work I have to do and my added commitments like tutoring and YAA and it started getting worse until finally I was feeling so whoozy I realised I was having a panic attack and would pass out soon if I didn't get it under control.
So I remembered something from physiology in third year that basically said that I had to reset some chemoreceptors in my brain in order to breathe easier and to do that I had to breathe into my hand to get more CO2. I still hyperventilated for a while but it eventually stopped! So a big thanks to Julia Raftos for teaching us that little trick!
Anyway, I couldn't sleep after that so decided I'd get up and have a shower and come into work early (that is 5am!). I am now determined to get everything under control starting with my desk which is looking increasingly like Jenny Donald's desk! After that I'm going to talk to my supervisor about him showing me a protocol for an experiment I've been bugging him about for the last two weeks!

So, yeah I'm a little better now but thats why I haven't written in this for the last two weeks (before that I was interstate as you all know!).
Have a really great day and remember that trick of breathing into your hands if you're hyperventilating!