When panic attacks the counselor

I think I might have had a panic attack recently. Can you describe what one actually looks and feels like, and tell me what I can do if it happens again?

First, the good news: Even though you may feel as if you are dying, a panic attack won’t kill you. A panic attack occurs when the anxiety response to a situation is disproportionate to the actual triggering event. This can be caused by a history of trauma, such as the case of someone suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder. As those who have suffered panic attacks know all too well, it is frightening.

a counselor. Your therapist will help you identify triggers and reduce distorted thinking. They will also help you with breathing exercises and relaxation techniques. Unfortunately (as you may have noticed) anxiety is often chronic. It is helpful to accept anxiety as something you can manage with God’s help, rather than something that has a 100% cure rate. Nothing is more anxiety provoking than expecting to achieve absolute perfection.

McCORMICK

A true panic attack has some very specific identifiers. Physical symptoms include pounding heart, sweating, trembling, chest pain, dizziness, feelings of choking, and nausea. Psychological symptoms of a panic attack include fear of losing control or going crazy, fear of dying, feeling detached from reality, or feeling detached from oneself. During a panic attack you may feel as if your body has taken over and this physical rebellion cannot be controlled by rational thought. Anxiety is one of the most common reasons people come to

I would suggest you see your primary care physician first to rule out any medical causes for your heightened anxiety. You should also discuss the benefits of seeing a licensed professional counselor if you are indeed suffering from panic attacks.

And what about the spiritual component? Prayer is healing and calming; having God as someone to hand our anxiety to is key to survival in our chaotic world. Having a trusted friend you can talk to, someone who encourages you with grace, will also be enormously beneficial.

Mark McCormick is director of clinic operations for Illinois Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services. Send questions for Mark to IllinoisBaptist@IBSA.org.

Dave Says

Adjust our emergency fund?

QMy husband and I have been married five years, and we’ve decided we want to have children. We’ve both been working full time since our wedding, and we were wondering if we should adjust our emergency fund and retirement investing to accommodate all the upcoming life changes that go along with having a bigger family.

AWhen it comes to an emergency fund, I’d stick with what I recommend in the Baby Steps. A good emergency fund of three to six months of expenses should be fine. If you feel safer leaning toward the six-month side, that’s fine. As far as investing is concerned, that’s Baby Step 4. This means 15% of your household income going toward retirement. None of that really changes.

Now, with another person in the house, your day-to-day expenses are going to increase. That’ll make it even more important to make sure you’re living on a written monthly budget. What you don’t want to do, is quit your job to come home and be a fulltime mom, then find yourselves dipping into the emergency fund. Being a stay-at-home mom is fine. It’s a wonderful thing if you can afford it. But if that’s the plan you need to budget accordingly, and practice living on just your husband’s income before you quit your job.

God bless you two!

neTworking

Micro investing apps

QWhat is your opinion on micro investing apps like Acorns and Betterment? Are these good vehicles for building wealth in the long term, and are there any major drawbacks to these types of services?

AI’m not saying there’s anything really wrong with Acorns or Betterment, but they do different things. Acorns is more of an invest pennies, round-up kind of program, where Betterment is kind of a robo-investing deal. Here’s the thing. Micro investing is going to create micro wealth. And the big downside is you’re going to feel like you did something important. The way you end up with money is by investing money. The way you end up with more money is by investing more money. You can argue all you want that using things like these create extra money. Yeah, but not really. The returns are still micro. An app doesn’t make two dollars turn into twenty dollars. It’s okay to use apps like that. I’m not mad at them, and I don’t think they’re a ripoff or anything like that. What worries me about these kinds of things, in an investing sense, is they give the illusion that you’ve done something significant with your money.

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Ava Missionary Baptist Church is seeking a bivocational pastor. Must be a Spirit-filled man to fulfill our vision, upholding the unity of our church; strong in The Baptist Faith and Message (2000); and a supporter of IBSA and the SBC. Send resumes to Wanda McDaniel, P.O. Box 357, Ava, IL 62907, or e-mail wayneymac@gmail.com.

Royalton Baptist Church is seeking a director of youth ministries to provide a well-balanced program for youth that will seek to win the lost to Christ, help Christians mature in Christ, and discover the gifts and abilities with which God has blessed them. Submit resume with cover letter to rbcyouthsearch@gmail. com. advisor Dave Ramsey is a prolific author and radio host.

Wayne City Baptist Church is seeking a full- or part-time senior pastor. Send resumes to waynecitybaptistjobs@gmail.com, or mail to Wayne City Baptist Church, P.O. Box 158, Wayne City, IL 62895.

With the Lord Phyllis Miller Cummins of Ozark, Mo., died July 5 at the age of 80. With her husband, Doyle Miller, she served in Illinois churches throughout her life, including congregations in Decatur, Carlinville, and Raymond. He preceded her in death in 2001. She is survived by her second husband, Rev. Harold Cummins; two children; and two grandchildren.

John Burnell of Summerfield, Fla., died July 26 at the age of 87. Burnell pastored New Life Baptist Church in Waverly from 1999 to 2014, and also worked as a supervisor for General Telephone in Illinois for 35 years. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; two daughters; and eight grandchildren and great-grandchildren.