Anxiety Therapy
Do You Feel Too Anxious To Be Present In Your Life?
Are you struggling with ruminating thoughts and irrational fears? Has uncertainty about the future left you unable to focus on the present? Do you suffer from a lack of security in your relationships, as if you’re not good enough for anyone?
Maybe you’re always keyed up or on edge, like something terrible is about to happen. Even when you know that your fears aren’t rational, they’re too powerful to shut off—you’re always worrying about your next move and living in fear of failure. You might seek constant reassurance from others, asking questions like “Did I seem awkward?” or “Did I say the wrong thing?”
Because you’re always ruminating on the past or worrying about the future, you probably wish you had the ability to feel present in your life.
The More You Do To Control Your Anxiety, The Worse It Often Gets
Anxiety is very much a “thinking and doing” disorder rather than a “being and feeling” one. It makes you think so hard about all the bad things that could happen, which makes you do everything you can to prevent them. It’s like life is leading you around by the nose, telling you that you have to do X, Y, and Z in order to eliminate your stress.
Yet the more you end up doing, the more stressed out you probably become—creating a negative feedback loop of behaviors that reinforce anxiety. If you want to break out of this cycle and get to a place of “being and feeling,” I encourage you to connect with me. Therapy can help you learn to regulate your anxiety so that you can be present in your life again.
Anxiety Is Hard To Let Go Of Because It’s Designed To Keep Us Safe
Everyone experiences anxiety. In fact, anxiety is one of our brain’s default settings—we are biologically wired for safety over comfort, and anxiety is designed to keep us safe. Some people’s minds and bodies are simply more prone to anxiety due to hereditary issues, difficult life experiences, or a combination of both.
It’s hard to consciously let go of anxiety. Because we are wired for safety, our brains generally don’t focus on what’s going right in our lives. No one wakes up in the morning thinking “There’s nothing wrong with my left foot.” Instead, we think about what’s going wrong because we live in protective mode. We think about all the bad things that could happen so that we can be prepared.
Many People Feel Attached To Anxiety Because It Motivates Them
Because anxiety keeps us safe, it isn’t always a bad thing. Nonetheless, many people get attached to anxiety for the wrong reasons. A lot of my clients tell me that they feel dependent on anxiety because it’s how they “get stuff done.” In other words, feeling stressed motivates them to be successful.
The problem is that when anxiety gets out of control, it prevents you from living up to your full potential. Therapy can help you achieve a healthier balance of emotions so that you can regulate your anxiety and keep it from controlling your life.
Anxiety Therapy Can Give You The Confidence To Handle Whatever Comes Your Way
Let’s be honest: if you’re reading this page, you’ve probably already tried to work through anxiety alone. But when you treat anxiety by making decisions based on your own internal conversations, you’re essentially trying to use anxiety to solve anxiety. You can’t think the perfect thought or make the perfect decision. It’s like playing chess against yourself—your anxiety will always know your next move.
A trained therapist can help you shift your mindset so that you’re not just trying to problem-solve your way out of anxiety. Instead, I’ll help you get calm and regulated and then focus on problem-solving. This way, you can stop the feedback loop of anxiety and approach life with greater confidence and serenity.
What To Expect In Anxiety Counseling Sessions
Therapy gives you an opportunity to express and process your internal world in a safe, nonjudgmental space. You can expect to gain insight, coping skills, and increased regulation of your nervous system.
I like to approach anxiety from two ends at once. I look at it from the bottom up, exploring the root causes of your anxiety (such as trauma or genetics), and then I look at it from the top down, addressing the behaviors and thought patterns that reinforce your anxiety. In this way, therapy will focus on both your past experiences and your present struggles.
Tailoring Your Anxiety Treatment Plan
I always customize my approach to suit each client’s needs. If your anxiety stems from trauma, we can use EMDR therapy to help you reprocess your traumatic experience and overcome the negative beliefs that it created. We can also utilize Brainspotting, which is a similar approach that allows you to mindfully process your anxiety using a series of different eye positions.
CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is also very central to treating anxiety. The goal of CBT is to change your relationship with your thoughts in order to change your emotions and behavior. By challenging automatic thought patterns, you can rewire your brain’s response to stressful situations and achieve a more positive outlook.
No matter how stuck you feel, your level of anxiety can absolutely go down. The reason your anxiety is causing you to suffer is that it is too high—it’s over-predicting that something bad will happen and underestimating your ability to handle it. The goal of counseling is to achieve a healthier balance between these two things, helping you feel confident in your ability to manage whatever comes your way.
You May Have Some Concerns About Anxiety Therapy…
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When you’ve lived with anxiety your whole life, it begins to feel like who you are. The truth is that it’s not. You’ve read this far on the website because a part of you—even if it’s a small part—believe it’s possible to change. Oftentimes, that willingness to heal and grow is the most important ingredient for making therapy successful.
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My goal is to help you lower your anxiety and have those gains maintained after you leave treatment. I want you to heal the deeper roots of your anxiety so that you can find long-lasting relief and effectively become your own therapist.
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Going to therapy can seem intimidating at first, especially if you have social anxiety. That’s why I make every effort to provide a safe, nonjudgmental space for you to address your fears and vulnerabilities. The nature of fear is that it becomes less powerful the more you address it. And when you have a therapist who can walk with you every step of the way, discussing your fears seems even less daunting.
Let Me Help You Return To A State Of Being And Feeling
Anxiety keeps you in a constant mode of thinking and doing. I want to help you get back to a place of being and feeling, allowing you to feel more present. To begin the healing process, you can use the contact form or call me at 949-682-5731.
