How Bag Breathing Can Help Remedy the Aftereffects of a Panic Attack

Across the world, millions of people every year suffer from panic attacks. These stress-related episodes can be harrowing and highly traumatic for many, and their aftermath requires immediate physical and mental attention. While panic attacks can impact the human body in a variety of different ways, one of the most detrimental aftereffects is respiratory alkalosis or elevated blood pH levels.

One of the hallmark symptoms of a panic attack is hyperventilation or abnormally rapid breathing. During hyperventilation, the rate of oxygen intake and carbon dioxide output increases within the body, but the respiratory system—which is also responsible for fixing carbon dioxide into the bloodstream—is unable to keep up with this rapid pace of respiration, resulting in lower blood carbon dioxide levels.

Curiously enough, low carbon dioxide levels is one of the very few instances that can change our blood's highly regulated pH levels. Within our body, carbon dioxide exists in an equilibrium with carbonic acid, meaning their concentrations within the bloodstream are directly related. When dissolved carbon dioxide levels drop, carbonic acid levels, too, will fall in an attempt to balance the scales and reach a position of chemical equilibrium. When the concentration of carbonic acid drops within the bloodstream, blood pH will become less acidic and thus more basic, leading to a variety of different complications. Since blood is responsible for delivering oxygen to our entire body, even the slightest shift in its pH can lead to suboptimal and even detrimental consequences.

So, how can we treat blood alkalosis caused by panic attacks? A simple remedy: breathing into a plastic or paper bag. In order to restore normal blood pH levels, we need to shift the equilibrium system to produce more carbonic acid. We can do this by re-establishing normal dissolved carbon dioxide levels within the bloodstream, which is where the bag comes into play. When breathing into a bag, you are breathing in the carbon dioxide you've just previously exhaled, forcing it back into your body and giving your respiratory system the time it needs to fix it into the bloodstream. This simple and easy tactic can help restore blood pH levels following panic attacks and other stress-related episodes.