5. Through meditation you desensitize yourself to whatever is on your mind. You are able to notice your personal fears, concerns, or worries and at the same time step back and become detached from them. In this manner you can learn about your problems instead of being consumed by them.

6. If you regularly practice meditation and are able to feel more relaxed during that time, you gain the experience of mastery: your voluntary actions produce pleasurable changes in your body and mind.

7. As you acquire the knowledge of how you feel when you are calm, then you can use that feeling as a reference point during your day. For instance, if you feel calm after meditation in the morning, you will have a greater chance of noticing the subtle cues of tension later in the day. In other words, meditation (as well as relaxation) helps you become more alert to what circumstances are stressful in your life. You then have time to intervene in your circumstances before your tension builds to uncomfortable proportions.

8. In the upcoming steps you will learn the importance of noticing your thought process leading up to and during panic. You must develop the sensitivity:

1. to notice those thoughts,
2. to then let go those thoughts, and finally,
3. to turn your attention to some specific supportive tasks.

That is no simple feat! By practicing meditation you practice those three steps without simultaneously struggling with the frightening experience of panic.

9. Some people attempt to overcome the anxious thoughts leading up to panic by replacing them with positive thoughts. For instance, if they are thinking, "I'm about to lose control and go crazy," they will begin to simultaneously tell themselves, "no, I won't. I've never gone crazy before. I'll calm down soon." Sometimes this is quite a successful strategy. At other times, though, it can backfire by producing an internal quarrel. In arguments, of course, we tend to "dig in" to defend our position, and that's what can happen here: the fearful thoughts only get stronger. A central strategy you will learn in the coming steps is first to stop those fearful comments completely by shifting your attention to some neutral task. Then, after disrupting your fearful thoughts for a few seconds or a few minutes, you will be better able to introduce positive, supportive suggestions without risking the internal battle. The two meditative techniques in this section ("concentration" and "awareness") teach you this basic skill. In Step 3: Practicing Your Breathing Skills, you learned two of these disruptive processes -- Calming Breath and Calming Counts -- which are similar to brief forms of meditation.

Which method if best for you?

One essential purpose of practicing formal relaxation or meditation is to give your mind and body the peaceful rest that comes whenever you elicit the Calming Response. By practicing one of these methods daily for a number of weeks, you learn how you feel when you calm down. You discover that you don't "lose control" as you let go of your tensions; you actually gain control. Choose whichever method interests you, then give yourself time to catch on to the technique.

I have outlined a number of benefits that can come from meditation. If you are a person who is plagued with many anxious thoughts, you will probably have an easier time with concentration meditation rather than awareness meditation, since it provides you with a specific mental focus.

Research suggests that people who experience predominantly physical symptoms of anxiety can diminish these tensions best through regular practice of active techniques such as Deep Muscle Relaxation. Engaging in some form of regular physical exercise -- such as walking, dancing, or active sports -- can also help control anxiety that you express physically.

If you want a variety of suggestions during your relaxation practice and also want the pleasure of sitting quietly without having to move your muscle groups, then you will like Generalized Relaxation and Imagery.

Even if you prefer one of the two formal relaxation methods, I suggest that you spend some time with meditative practice. Use meditation to teach yourself how to disrupt your intrusive thoughts while you use relaxation to gain a sense of calmness.

Whichever approach you choose, your initial concentration will take serious effort. Invest your time, and don't be self-critical if you notice few immediate positive results. Use the time as practice, not as a test. If nothing more, the simple task of sitting quietly for twenty minutes each day can bring rewards.

next: STEP 3: Practice Your Breathing Skills