Give you rest

I occasionally have panic attacks. They put me in highly embarrassing situations sometimes. Usually, I can feel an attack coming on and get ahead of it using different tactics to stop it from becoming unmanageable. I have a therapist who has given me methods of calming down and grounding myself. I have emergency medicine if things get too out of hand. Sometimes an attack just won’t be stopped. Sometimes, the feeling is just too big. 

There is a scene in Iron Man 3 where Tony Stark thinks he’s having a heart attack, so he runs diagnostics from his suit and finds out it’s actually a panic attack. I thought this was a brilliant way of portraying what a panic attack feels like. One of the greatest minds in the Marvel Universe thinks his heart has stopped beating. He convinces the audience that he is about to die because he so fervently believes that to be true. I also feel better about my disorder knowing that Iron Man has panic attacks too. Just sayin’.

With a panic attack, your body uses different parts of the brain to trigger a fight or flight response. Your primal instinct kicks in and makes you feel the same feelings as if a predator was chasing you. Your brain is warning you that there is danger, but it comes from a problem that you might not be able to do anything about in the moment. It might not even come from a real problem! Your brain doesn’t know that. It’s just thinking, “EMERGENCY!” 

Sometimes, in the beginning, stages, or even the full throws of an attack, I think of that song “The Battle Belongs.” The chorus says:

So when I fight I'll fight on my knees

With my hands lifted high

Oh God the battle belongs to You

And every fear I lay at Your feet

I'll sing through the night

Oh God the battle belongs to You

There’s a reason they are called panic attacks. I picture my brain and its chemicals rioting in my head. I can’t take on those riots myself. I close my eyes, employ my breathing techniques, and give that battle to God. 

That being said, I still need some tangible forms of treatment. By no means am I saying that you should sit there and let your body become overcome with anxiety while you wait for God to turn off the attack. Please don’t misunderstand me. 

While God has provided me with resources for my attacks, He is also the primary resource. He provided me with a network of people who can support me, care for me, and teach me more ways to ward off or come down from an attack. People who know what medicines I need and guide me in all aspects of my life to supplement treatment for my attacks. He is providing for me as well as fighting alongside me. I can be still with Him while I breathe and feel the peace of a loving God.

What kind of battles are you fighting? Mental health battles? Physical health battles? Relationship battles? Is it a battle just to turn on the news? There are so many battles going on in the world right now. Some of them have been around for a long time. They make us tired. We think we can’t keep dealing with them. But God says this in Matthew 11:28:

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

God wants to help us fight our battles. He wants to give us tools to make our burdens lighter. Our battles belong to Him.

Kelsey Wenrich

Community & Connections Coordinator