Q. I suffer from panic/agoraphobia. I am still having panic attacks and some agoraphobia so I went to a therapist late last year. She said I had a hyperventilation problem and insisted I should fix it before she could start CBT. She sent me away to practice breathing and said to return in 3 months! Do you think this is satisfactory? I think CBT should start immediately, perhaps incorporating correct breathing. I can do the breathing exercise (4 sec in, 4 sec out for 2-3 min. several times a day). When I'm calm though, sometimes it makes me lightheaded. When anxious, which is more often, the exercises are useless. They make me more self-focused and worse. Calm thinking helps me much more. Am I on the wrong track with this therapist? I would appreciate your comments.

Am I on the wrong track with this therapist?

A. I think so. I have never heard of this before.

(a) The hyperventilation theories about anxiety disorders were disproved almost 10 years ago. (Thank heavens!)
(b) The latest CBT treatments do not include breathing techniques at all. Not because they don't work, but because it diverts peoples' attention from the primary cause of their problem, their thinking.

Thank you for your feedback. I do appreciate the comments.

Reply Thanks for your prompt reply. Now I have cast off the breathing exercises worry, I feel better already.

It's a disgrace how some of these therapists mislead us. It's also happened to many others I know. I saw (another therapist) about a year ago and she told me I probably had "very elastic blood vessels, as when I walk around or stand in shops, the blood is circulating in my legs and extremities which causes lightheadness." She suggested a beta blocker to stop the palpitations. I walked straight out and crossed her off the list.

Hope I don't sound difficult, but I'd really like to find someone  who understand and know how to treat anxiety, so I don't have to live with it forever. I shall continue to hunt for a good therapist.

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