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Hyperventilation (rapid breathing)  

Hyperventilation can occur without warning during moments of anxiety and stress.
It is not life threatening.
You may experience a feeling of nausea, breathlessness, rapid breathing, pins’n needles in fingers and lips, or muscle spasm in your hands.

The following guidelines will help you if these symptoms reoccur:

- Try not to panic.

- Sit down and try to slow your breathing down.

- Take a slow deep breath and hold it for 2–4 seconds before breathing out, try not to breathe in for another 2 seconds. Repeat this pattern until the breathing returns to a normal 12–18 breaths per minute.

- You may also find that re-breathing into a paper bag (not a plastic one) will help your breathing to return to normal. Just hold a paper bag to your mouth and nose and breathe the same air in and out for a few minutes.

- You may find it helpful to have a friend with you to talk you through your breathing.

- We recommend that you practice these techniques before you need them.

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