When My Brain Starts Spiraling

My Go To Resets for Anxiety, Panic, and OCD Loops

(in case you happen to be an anxious girly too)

If your brain spirals into anxiety, panic, or OCD thought loops… you’re not the only one.

These are some of the things that personally help me reset my nervous system when my brain starts getting loud.

Learning about anxiety and OCD changed a lot for me because it helped me stop believing every thought my brain produces.

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1. Box Breathing

When anxiety or panic hits, your breathing usually becomes fast and shallow. That tells your brain something is wrong and keeps your body stuck in fight or flight.

Slowing your breathing sends the opposite signal to your brain.

Try this:

Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds

Hold for 4 seconds

Exhale through your mouth for 6 seconds

Breathe deep enough that you can physically hear your breath going in and out.

Your brain and nervous system are wired for survival. Thousands of years ago, if you were being chased by something dangerous, your breathing would speed up because your body needed oxygen to run or fight.

Fast breathing meant danger.

But if you have the ability to slow down, pause, and take controlled breaths, your brain starts to recognize that you are not actually in immediate danger.

If you have time to stop and breathe, your body learns that the threat has passed.

Over time you’ll notice you can inhale deeper, hold longer, and exhale slower as your lungs and nervous system learn how to calm down again.

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2. My Calm Script

OCD works by creating intrusive thoughts that feel urgent, important, or dangerous.

The amygdala detects threats and triggers fear responses, even when there isn’t real danger. The hippocampus tries to give context, but during anxiety it can mislabel normal thoughts as threats.

That’s how spirals happen.

But intrusive thoughts are still just thoughts. They are not predictions, warnings, or evidence.

Your brain loves to tell stories when anxiety kicks in.

Make it show receipts.

These are phrases I use when OCD thoughts or anxiety loops start spiraling:

“Anxiety is not prophecy.”

“Thoughts are not warnings.”

“A thought is not evidence.”

“Wait it out. This is fear, not fact.”

“I’m only human. My responsibility ends where someone else’s begins.”

I usually repeat these while doing box breathing.

Anxiety and fear are powerful feelings, but feelings are not facts.

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3. Break Away From Your Environment

Sometimes the spiral is happening because you’ve been sitting in the same place too long while your thoughts keep looping.

Stand up.

Walk to another room.

Sit on the porch.

Step outside.

Go for even a short walk.

Changing your environment gives your brain new sensory input.

Movement, air, light, and sound interrupt the loop your brain got stuck in and help bring you back into the present moment.

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4. Nervous System Reset

Cold and temperature changes can interrupt a panic response quickly.

Step outside if it’s winter.

Use a TheraICE cap.

Use an ice roller on your face.

Cold stimulation activates the vagus nerve and helps pull your nervous system out of panic mode by bringing your attention back into the present moment.

Sometimes your body also just needs help calming down.

A hot shower followed by a quick blast of cold water can help regulate your nervous system. Warm water relaxes muscles and releases tension, while the cold at the end helps signal to the brain that the threat has passed.

That temperature shift can help move the body out of fight or flight and back into a calmer state.

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5. Focus on Calming Rituals

Sometimes I intentionally redirect my attention to comforting routines.

An everything shower

Doing my skincare

Putting on comfy clothes

Making an iced coffee

Lighting candles

Filling my essential oil diffuser with calming scents like lemongrass, peppermint, orange, or lavender

Getting cozy

Wrapping up in a blanket

Simple rituals like these can be surprisingly grounding.

They give your brain something predictable to focus on and send the signal that you’re safe enough to slow down.

The sensory part helps too.

Warm water on your skin

A calming scent in the air

The taste of coffee

Soft clothes and blankets

All of those things gently pull your brain out of the spiral and back into the present moment.

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6. Distraction

Sometimes the goal isn’t solving the thought.

Sometimes the goal is simply interrupting the loop.

Washing dishes

Wiping counters

Folding laundry

Cleaning something small

Singing music lyrics

Music alone doesn’t always work for me because my brain can still spiral in the background.

So I pair movement with something that has words:

Podcasts

Audiobooks

Silk and Sonder

Shows that pull you in

It gives my mind something to follow while my hands are busy doing a small task.

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7. Audiobooks That Helped Me Understand My Brain

Learning about the brain helped me stop treating every thought like it was a fact.

“Rewire Your OCD Brain” by Catherine M. Pittman PhD

Helped me understand the neuroscience behind OCD, intrusive thoughts, and fear loops.

“Too Perfect” by Allan E. Mallinger MD

A helpful breakdown of perfectionism and control driven anxiety.

“The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk MD

Explains how trauma and stress get stored in the body and nervous system.

“Your Brain Is Always Listening” by Daniel G. Amen

Breaks down negative thought loops and how they form.

“Get Me Out of Here” by Rachel Reiland

A memoir about living with BPD and going through therapy. Especially validating if you struggle with splitting episodes.

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8. Talking It Out

If I can’t get out of my head, I talk it out.

Sometimes I vent to ChatGPT first.

Sometimes I pray first.

Sometimes I talk to my husband, my mom, or my best friend first.

The order doesn’t matter.

The point is getting the thoughts out of my head so they stop looping.

ChatGPT helps because I can dump everything without filtering it and get grounding or psychological feedback in the moment.

Prayer reminds me I’m not carrying everything alone.

Talking to someone I trust brings perspective back.

Sometimes I journal afterward.

The goal is release.

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9. OCD Workbook I’m Currently Working Through

Another thing that has helped me is working through an OCD workbook with my therapist.

“The OCD Workbook” by Bruce M. Hyman PhD and Cherry Pedrick RN.

You can find it on Amazon or at Walmart.

It breaks OCD down into practical steps like understanding intrusive thoughts, recognizing compulsions, and learning exposure and response prevention.

I’m currently on chapter 9.

It’s helped me recognize my patterns and respond differently instead of automatically getting pulled into the loop.

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10. Medication If Needed

For me personally, clonazepam 0.5 mg has helped during severe panic attacks.

I only use it in emergencies.

Panic attacks can feel extremely physical:

Rapid heart rate

Chest pressure

Shortness of breath

Dizziness

Shaking

I’ve gone to the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack.

Doctors explained panic attacks are often mistaken for heart attacks because they feel almost identical.

Clonazepam works by enhancing GABA, calming the nervous system and pulling the body out of fight or flight.

For me, it acts like a reset when everything feels out of control.

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11. Remind Yourself You’ve Survived This Before

When you’re in a spiral, it can feel permanent.

But it’s not.

I remind myself:

I’ve felt this before.

I survived it before.

It passed every time.

Your brain is trying to protect you.

It’s just being a little too loud.

This feeling is temporary.

You’ve made it through before.

You will again.

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Disclaimer

I’ve been diagnosed by a therapist with OCD and anxiety, and I do experience panic attacks.

These are just tools that personally help me when my brain starts spiraling.

I’m not a professional, just sharing what has helped me.

If you struggle with anxiety, OCD, or panic attacks, talking to a licensed therapist or mental health professional can really help.

❤️

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” - Philippians 4:6–7

Kristen, Unfiltered Xo 💋