Associated symptoms
Breathlessness is a very anxious symptom. Therefore the body reacts to psychologically caused shortness of breath mostly with additional symptoms of fear. These include palpitations, damp hands and sweating.
Depending on the severity of the shortness of breath, any kind of anxiety can occur, from mild anxiety to severe panic attacks. Another possible reaction is hyperventilation. Here, the affected person breathes with very fast and very deep breaths.
Although there is enough oxygen in the blood, the body breathes in more and more oxygen and gets rid of more and more CO2 by breathing out. Thus, this system gets out of balance, the persons get shaky and tingling hands. In acute cases it helps to breathe into a plastic bag. As a result, the exhaled CO2 is inhaled again, at the same time less oxygen reaches the blood and the balance between the two components is maintained.
Therapy – what can you do?
Depending on the trigger of the shortness of breath, different treatment methods can help. If the cause lies in a certain anxiety-ridden situation, professional psychotherapy should be used to slowly approach this situation. In this way, the fear is reduced and the shortness of breath is alleviated.
If the shortness of breath is caused by general stress, it is helpful to become aware of the stress situation. Often, rapid breathing sets in without the affected person noticing. Only when sudden shortness of breath is felt does the person become aware of the stress.
So if you go through your everyday life more consciously, prevent stress and breathe in and out slowly in unavoidable stressful situations, you can prevent shortness of breath. For people who react to certain situations with hyperventilation, breathing into a paper bag helps in acute cases.As a result, the exhaled air is directly inhaled again so that the body does not absorb too much oxygen and at the same time does not release too much CO2. However, it is also possible to take preventive sedatives, which must be prescribed by a psychiatrist.
In general, in cases of psychologically induced shortness of breath, it is advisable to be more aware of the triggering situations in order to be able to take preventive action. If this does not help, it is advisable to seek professional help in good time. On a homeopathic basis there are many approaches that can be especially helpful in combination with psychotherapy.
If breathing difficulties are accompanied by oppressive feelings, lemon balm, valerian, St. John’s wort or wolfsbane can alleviate the symptoms. Schüssler salts are also used with pleasure. As with any other medication, the taking of homeopathic remedies should be reported to the treating physician, as the remedies can interact with other medications and thus can increase or decrease their effect (sometimes life-threatening! ).
