A random night

Last night, I received a phone call from mum and she sounded in distress. Somebody called my neighbor to ask about my house when nobody was at home and the caller was unknown. Told mum to be careful in case some burglars trying to find info before breaking in.

Later, I read about an article regarding a robbery case which happened outside a house two nights ago. While such cases are not uncommon, I suddenly got extra worried for a friend's safety after not hearing a message reply after some time.

To keep a long story short, what happened was my neighbor made a mistake and no one was asking about my house and my friend was doing something without the phone.

What's interesting was the physiological changes which took place. First, I linked two totally unrelated scenario and had very negative thoughts for both. Then, I started to scare myself and as the fear snowballed, I started to question, "what if this, what if that?" Minutes later, my body started trembling, I had difficulty breathing and felt like puking.

It was a different fear compared to what I usually feel before cold calling or public speaking. There were more anxiousness and fear of rejection and/or criticism from the latter. It was a different fear compared to when I barely missed a car accident. The feeling I had was most similar to what I felt during an occasion two years ago when I was scolded by boss for not listening and not doing what I was supposed to do. There was fear and other feelings which I am not able to articulate.

Two questions. What emotions did I feel and how to I deal with such emotions if it arises again in the future?

Normally, I would use the preventive method, which is to stop the worrying from building by shifting my thoughts to a more positive perspective. For example, by considering that the person who was asking for my house might be a friend or relative who happens to have my neighbor's number. Then, calmly find out what exactly happened.

While prevention is better than cure, what if the emotional flooding could not be prevented? How then do I gain composure and address such situations in a more effective manner?