Anxiety can cause the chest to tighten leading to feelings of hyperventilation or an abnormal shortness of breath. Breathing exercises are an effective way to relieve chest tightness; try taking long deep breaths which involve inhaling through your nose for around 10 seconds and exhaling through your mouth for around 10 seconds. Another method to reduce anxiety related chest tightness includes focusing on happy, calming thoughts which take the focus away from the root cause of the panic attack. If anybody is experiencing chest tightness for the first time or is having chest pains that are different from the type of pain associated with their anxiety, they should discuss this with a trained healthcare professional.
