Practical tips on dealing with anxiety in the moment for 'Mental Health Awareness Month'

This week, during the 4th year of their "More Good Days In May" initiative to further discussions around mental health, Audacy's The Bubba Show is joined by clinical psychologist Dr. Thea Gallagher to talk about fears, anxiety, and panic attacks -- and how to overcome them, offering amazing advice for anyone struggling.

LISTEN NOW: Dr. Thea Gallagher Talks Fears

“Rationalizing with anxiety, you're gonna lose,” says Dr. Gallagher. “It's gonna win right? There's always a chance and also it's really hard to rationalize when you're in a fear state. It's just really hard.”

“What you have to do instead in those moments, if you're activated, is really calm down your physiology, that's the first thing you can do. Everybody who's listening with me today can even do this right now: You just take a deep breath in with your nose and then a deep breath out, get all that air out -- even just sit for a moment with all the air out of you -- and then kind of breathe back in. Sometimes just trying to slow down that physiology can help so much.”

“Another thing to remember is -- there's other kind of ways to rewire the brain -- but you want to also tell your brain, ‘I am not in danger just because I feel like I am doesn't mean I'm actually in a dangerous place.’ And then also just kind of reminding yourself this isn't going to last forever. ‘I'm not going to feel this way in even 15 minutes.’ We know that panic attacks tend to peak at around 10 minutes and then they go down.”

“Your body doesn't want to be anxious forever,” Dr. Gallagher adds. “It doesn't want to feel that way forever. So, if you can remember that in this moment, this is not going to last forever, you will keep from panicking about the panic, and that's the one thing we really want to avoid.”

Listen to The Bubba Show 's full chat with Dr. Thea Gallagher above.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and Audacy remains committed to furthering important conversations surrounding mental health -- because we believe talk has the power to save lives. Click here for our resources page , which provides a comprehensive overview of programs for you or your loved ones to contribute to your overall well-being and mental health. You are not alone.