A few months ago I started having trouble with anxiety and panic attacks. I was recommended Headspace, so I started and got to Day 15. Through the process, I have had a big focus on my pulse, and sometimes it is very predominant.

I feel now as if I have hit a wall. I’ve started getting what I’ve come to call “stress rushes” during my meditation. It almost feels like the onset of a panic attack, where my pulse rises and becomes very strong. I find myself scared to meditate and feel a lot of resistance to it—my pulse will rise even thinking about it.

What do you make of this? Should I just continue, even though I sit there for 20 minutes feeling a strong pulse in my chest and head? I have gotten so much out of the meditation, and I want to continue!

. . .

Hi, it’s great to know Headspace has been so useful in your life and thanks for all the kind words.

In answer to your question, yes, it is not uncommon when learning to meditate to become more aware of physical sensations. This can sometimes be aches and pains we were not previously aware of, or the feeling of our heartbeat, our pulse and so on.

Every person reacts to this differently. Some people have an underlying sense of frustration in their life and so they tend to react toward the feeling or sound with irritation. Some people have an underlying sense of hopelessness in their life and so they tend to react toward the feeling with self-pity. Others have an underlying sense of happiness and optimism and may well react with a sense of joy in feeling they are alive. So experiencing anxiety in relation to the sound or feeling simply suggests that there was already an undercurrent or predisposition toward anxiety.