Anxiety Therapy
Is Anxiety Compromising Your Quality Of Life?
Do you suffer from intense fears, worries, or panic attacks?
Are you prone to overthinking, even when it comes to normal, everyday decisions?
Is anxiety impacting your work, relationships, and ability to relax?
Anxiety manifests as distressing, uncomfortable symptoms. And while anxiety looks a little different for each person, these symptoms tend to significantly disrupt the lives of those experiencing them.
Some of the predominant ways that anxiety shows up are: irrational and/or all-consuming fear, intense worry, overthinking, avoidant behaviors, disturbed sleep, low self-esteem, and stress-related physical issues. In some instances, panic attacks can occur, during which cortisol levels spike and produce such symptoms as heart palpitations, sweating, lightheadedness, and an imminent fear of doom.
Additionally, anxiety is related to obsessive compulsive behaviors, as many people develop the belief that if they can control their surroundings, they can control their symptoms. However, despite the fact that anxiety manifests in surface-level ways, there are often hidden factors—far below the surface—that result in symptoms.
Therapy offers you a meaningful opportunity to address your worries, identify their origins, and overcome symptoms related to your anxiety. Working together, we can create strategies for reducing stress and increasing confidence in your life.
Anxiety Disorders Are Among The Most Common And Treatable Mental Health Issues
Anxiety is one of the most common mental health disorders, with nearly 31 percent of American adults developing symptoms at some point in their lives. [1] Unfortunately, in our high-pressure society, it can be difficult to detect anxious, disordered thinking—let alone seek treatment.
Instead of creating realistic, achievable standards, the entertainment industry and social media often force us into a perfectionistic mindset in which we begin to compare ourselves unfavorably against impossible expectations. Many of us look to the quick fixes of self-medicating, scrolling, or buying our way out of unhappiness, but without addressing the core issue, the cycle of anxiety just worsens.
It's easy to convince ourselves that we can tolerate anxiety or that treatment won’t help, but the truth is that it often takes outside perspective to help you see your way out of the cycle. Collaborating together in therapy, we will create a treatment plan that heals on a deep level while offering you relief from emotional and physical symptoms of anxiety.
An Individualized Treatment Approach Can Be The Key To Overcoming Anxiety
My job as a therapist is to create a safe, open counseling space where you can feel free to express and explore your anxiety. As you begin to understand the unique root of your symptoms and the restrictions they have imposed on your life, you can begin to untangle the life you really want from the one that your anxiety has been in control of.
What To Expect
Treatment for anxiety is customized to each client’s needs and goals for therapy. In general, however, I am likely to incorporate exposure therapy, mindfulness, and self-soothing techniques that can help you take small, manageable steps outside your comfort zone. As you expand your window of tolerance, you will be able to better handle feelings of stress, worry, and uncertainty.
The therapeutic relationship will also be an important tool in treatment. As we communicate openly about your symptoms and experiences, you will develop greater insight into your history and inner resources. With deepened awareness, you can feel confident to manage triggers and get ahead of anxiety symptoms before they spiral.
The vast majority of us will encounter anxiety in our lives, but therapy can be a determining factor in how much symptoms impact us on a daily basis. Though common, anxiety is extremely treatable. As your therapist, I will be with you every step of the way as you step outside of your comfort zone and discover new strategies for managing and overcoming anxiety.
Still Unsure If You’re Ready To Seek Therapy For Anxiety?
I should be able to handle anxiety on my own without the help of a therapist.
Many people feel like they “should” be able to overcome anxiety symptoms on their own but are often so caught up in the cycle of fear that they don’t know how to find their way out. Therapy is useful in reconnecting people with their inner strengths and resources, as well as with the external resources of their community.
The goal of anxiety treatment is not to foster a dependency on counseling but rather teach you how to leverage your skills, strategies, and resources to manage anxiety as it arises in your life.
I’ve had anxiety for as long as I can remember; therapy can’t help me.
In general, anxiety treatment yields a very high success rate, offering perspectives and insights that you may not have encountered before. It may be helpful to keep in mind that therapy does not bind you into any long-term commitment; you are welcome to try it out on a limited basis and see if it works for you.
I am an overthinker with a racing mind that is prone to imagining the worst-case scenario—how would anxiety treatment help me?
What you are experiencing is a lot more common than you might think. Fortunately, therapy centers around personalized guidance to help you develop skills and strategies for managing anxiety. As you learn to counter irrational fears and worries with balanced, self-compassionate thinking, you will be able to calm your mind, relax, and feel confident to make healthy decisions.
Let’s Work Together
If you struggle with catastrophic thinking, panic attacks, or other symptoms of anxiety, therapy can help you learn to tolerate uncertainty and reduce the intensity of your fears. For more information about how I can help or to schedule an appointment, contact me.
[1] https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/any-anxiety-disorder
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