Originally Posted by
Pathwaytofree 
How do you find that space between the panicked feeling of needing sugar/caffeine when anxious, with the remembering to have the thought in the mind to distract yourself instead with a book or magazine?
The practice of Mindfulness and meditation has been very helpful to me in this area, and really in any stressful situation where my anxiety would flare up. That's not to say that i mediate right then and there if my anxiety flares up...but I have actually tried it and it can help.
Long term is where the benefit was, at least for me. Practice of meditation especially allows me to now view my anxiety from the outside in. I can be mindful of the telltale symptoms as they happen - and remind myself that all of them are normal and regular things that happen to everyone. The increasing heart rate and breathing, the sweaty palms, etc.....those are normal and necessary reactions ingrained into our very being and our "fight or flight" responses.
The difference for those of us who suffer from anxiety is that we let those symptoms snowball and it sometimes makes it to the full panic level - literally for some.
So I practice that when I'm not feeling anxious too - I remind myself that anxiety attach never killed me ( or even injured me! ) and that all of the responses I might have are completely normal. And that it's OK to feel them...they always pass. And when you practice that over and over it literally gets easier and more natural over time. Not to say that i never get panicky anymore..I do. But i'm much more able to see it for what it is, and cut it off before things get too bad.