Counseling for Anxiety

It’s hard to describe the depths and breadth that the word “anxiety” can contain in just those seven letters.

A N X I E T Y

It can be a fleeting feeling of unsettledness or angst, easily shaken off and forgotten, and the sun is out again in moments. Anxiety can also stretch all the way to the darkness on the horizon and fill a person with dread, panic, cold sweat, and an unshakeable feeling of impending doom.

If words like restless, nervous, worried, uneasy, uncertain, distressed, irritable, and out-of-sorts describe emotions that cross your path more often that you would like, and it is affecting the type of life you want to live, you may be challenged by anxiety. Signs of anxiety might surface in our bodies as physical symptoms.

There are times that anxiety is our mind and body’s way of nudging us away from true hazards and towards safety. Sometimes we have been so persuaded to resist feelings of anxiety we may not accurately recognize trouble when it shows up in our lives. Then we end up taking chances we shouldn’t or even placing ourselves in harm’s way. Therapy can help you re/learn how to recognize and manage realistic risks.

You may be a person that overestimates threats, coming to the conclusion that situations are more iffy or treacherous than they are actually. Judging risks may have been a skill you didn’t have the chance to learn correctly or you could be one of the many people who are biologically predisposed to being extra sensitive to the world around you.

For some, anxiety is closely tied to social situations, a particular setting, a phobia, a fear of going out, a fear of being separated from someone important to them, or trauma.

Anxiety can lead us into wanting to isolate ourselves from others, shrink from conflict, or the opposite—become irritable, angry, or aggressive.

Often, people experiencing anxiety logically know they are safe but may still have a sense of vulnerability in a way the feels unmanageable.

Now What?

Now is a good time for a check-up with your doctor! Why? Because there are medications, supplements, substances, and medical conditions that lend themselves to creating anxious feelings. Look into whether anything physical is having an impact on your mood and you can either address it first or hand-in-hand with scheduling therapy. (Psst…don’t forget to consider your caffeine intake.)

When it comes to therapy, the effectiveness of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for the treatment of anxiety is well-documented by many years of research. It is frequently referred to as the gold-standard treatment for anxiety. Cognitive behavior therapy teaches you ways to adjust your thinking and actions.

In our meetings, you will learn how to:

• feel more at ease;
• look at situations in new, less troubling ways;
• reduce your reliance on avoidance;
• increase your comfort level with uncertainty;
• reduce your need for reassurance; and
• add to your problem-solving and coping skills.

In turn, these changes lead to improvements in your mood. During our sessions, you’ll learn how to apply cognitive behavior therapy and relaxation techniques for yourself so you’ll be building skills that will always be with you!