Does it matter if you breath into a paper or plastic bag when having a panic attack?

Question

I just wondered whether there's a difference.

Answer 1

Only if you are hyperventilating..then it is preferable to just try and slow your breathing down by inhaling through your nose and pursing your lips and blowing the air out your mouth

Answer 2

When some people are frightened, they breathe rapidly and deeply, even though they don't need the extra oxygen. This causes them to breathe out a large amount of carbon dioxide, and excessive loss of carbon dioxide causes the blood to become alkaline. This in turn causes the symptoms of a panic attack.” Breathe into a paper bag” this has long been the primary treatment for hyperventilation. The theory is that rebreathing into a paper bag will allow the person to replace the carbon dioxide "blown off" while hyperventilating. What is needed, is to sit down, be calm, and relax. You need to slow your breathing. The more tense you are, the faster you'll breathe. Practice breathing naturally. Don't take exaggerated breaths and don't take very shallow breaths—take normal breaths. That's one breath every 6 seconds or ten breaths a minute. Do this twice a day, 10 minutes per session. Here are some “don’ts” - cut caffeine it's a stimulant, and therefore, a potential trigger for hyperventilation. Watch out for coffee, tea, colas, and chocolate. Don't smoke. Nicotine is also a stimulant.
I add a link with details about panic attacks

http://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Panic_attack

Hope this helps
matador 89

Answer 3

From a performance viewpoint, either will do.

Plastic however is more risky to use because it more easily sticks to the skin and can seal off access to mouth and nose - which adds to the panic mode of the person. Plastic bag may also have residue from print ink, plastic monomers, plastic low MW polymer, etc and these are not good to inhale. (Paper may have some of this but usually a lot less).

Paper is more porous than plastic and tears easier - and this also reduces risk of the paper vs the plastic.

For these practical safety reasons, I would suggest paper bag.

Answer 4

I wouldn't think it would matter what you breath into but a paper bag would seem to be safer. What if you did pass out and land on the plastic bag. lol I don't know. Here's some info I found...

This talks about how breathing into the bag can make things worse:
http://firstaid.about.com/b/a/007554.htm

Here's some tips about panic attacks:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/389666/panic_attacks_overcome_them_with_these.html

Best wishes to ya!

Answer 5

Hmm, there is two different schools of thought on kthis really. During the panic attack people have a tendency to hyperventilate causeing muscle cramps higher aniexity and chest pain. The breathing into a paper bag was initially designed to , one callme the person and have them focus on their breathing and slow it down, and two to have them "re-breath" Carbon dioxide to help calm the body down. It is also accomplished with a non-rebreathing mask.

The other school of thought is to let the person hypr ventilate and pass out then the body will automaticly reset and usually you will wake right back up and fell some better.

My personal way of thinking is the first the biggest portion of getting better during a panic attack is to be able to calm yourself. What ever way works the best for you I woudl say use.

Answer 6

If you're having a panic attack & start hyperventilating (which is breathing oxygen in too fast and not letting the exchange of carbon dioxide to take place) you should use a paper bag (you could even cup your hands over your mouth).

Answer 7

I am single mum. I have been suffering for panic attacks for some 15 years now, though it was not until recently I understood what they were. They were progressively getting stronger and more frequent, stopping me from some days even leaving my house. I read this book and it all made perfect sense.

I am not saying I was not terrified of putting theory to action, I was more scared of that than the next attack! But I decided to view it as a game, one I had control of and could therefore not lose!

Answer 8

That whole "myth" about breathing into a bag when panicking isn't a myth after all. It actually does help. But in a very unhealthy way. Think of it this way: someone decides they want to commit suicide, so they start up their car inside the garage with the garage door closed. The carbon monoxide builds up, they drift off to sleep and slowly suffocate in their sleep from lack of oxygen. When you exhale and inhale into and from a bag you are essentially doing the same thing. The reason you become calm is because you are depressing the brain through lack of oxygen. It doesn't matter how big your breaths, you can gulp for air all you want, there is no oxygen to be found. This is akin to the sense of euphoria when one breathes in Nitrous Oxide, or when you stand up too fast and almost pass out. It's all about lack of oxygen. It may seem fun at the time, but it is really bad for the brain. Probably best to lay off the oxygen deprivation.

Answer 9

Yes it does, the reason that you breathe into a paper/plastic bag is scientific. When u are experiencing a panic attack the oxygen to your head is high, its almost like u are hyper ventilating, to reduce the flow of oxygen to your brain you breathe out into a paper bag,(carbon dioxide comes out) and then breathe in again from the same bag, so that u breath in the same air, gradually reducing the oxygen to the brain and in essense calming you down.

Answer 10

There is a safety factor when using a plastic bag because if you inhale strongly, you can suck the plastic bag in. That's the biggest difference and the reason that paper is recommended.

Answer 11

Just don't suffocate yourself in the plastic bag.

Regarding other comments here: inhaling CO (carbon monoxide) has a different effect from inhaling CO2 (which we do all the time). There's always a balance happening between O2 and CO2 in our bodies. But CO is a killer because it attaches itself to the same part of the haemoglobin molecule where the O2 normally goes, preventing the O2 from binding. Also, our exhaled breath does contain some O2, it's not all CO2. :)