Panic support
The 2-minute panic reset (you can do anywhere)
When panic starts to climb, you don't need a long routine — you need something tiny, specific, and reachable in seconds. Here's the flow we built into Kozy's Panic SOS.
The 2-minute panic reset (you can do anywhere)
Panic is fast. By the time you’ve remembered the name of your favourite breathing technique, the wave is already cresting. So the rule we used to design Kozy’s Panic SOS was simple: must be reachable in under three taps. Must work in two minutes. Must require zero thinking.
Here’s the flow — adapted so you can do it anywhere, even without the app.
Step 1 — Anchor (15 seconds)
Plant both feet on the ground. Press your palms into something solid: a desk, your thighs, the wall. Say to yourself, out loud if you can: “I am safe right now.”
You’re not arguing with the panic. You’re giving the body a tiny piece of evidence that the present is fine.
Step 2 — Slow the exhale (60 seconds)
Forget elaborate breathwork. The active ingredient is a longer out-breath than in-breath. Try four cycles of:
- Inhale through the nose for 4
- Exhale slowly through pursed lips for 6 to 8
If 4 feels too long, do 3-and-5. If even that’s too much, just make the exhale longer than the inhale and don’t worry about the count.
Step 3 — Ground in the senses (45 seconds)
Look around and name, silently or out loud:
- 3 things you can see
- 2 things you can hear
- 1 thing you can feel
(Yes, 5-4-3-2-1 is the standard version. We shorten it to 3-2-1 for panic specifically — long flows are too much when you’re flooded.)
Step 4 — One next step (any duration)
Don’t make a big plan. Pick the smallest doable next thing: a sip of water, sending one text, walking to the next room. The goal is just to break the freeze — momentum will follow.
Why this works
Panic is your body running a very old safety routine on bad data. You can’t reason it out of running, but you can hand it new information: stable feet, slow exhale, sensory present. That gives the nervous system the signals it actually checks for before standing down.
If panic shows up often, two things help between episodes: practising paced breathing when you’re calm so it’s automatic when you’re not, and noticing your earliest physical cues (clenched jaw, held breath, racing thoughts) so you catch it before it crests.
And if it’s getting more frequent or stopping you doing things you want to do — please talk to a doctor or therapist. Panic is treatable, and you don’t have to white-knuckle through it alone.
If you’re in crisis right now, please reach out to a local helpline. In the UK, Samaritans is on 116 123. In the US, dial 988.