Anxiety Therapy

Anxiety doesn't have to rule your life. You can learn effective strategies to help you breathe easier and cultivate peace.

Is Anxiety Depriving You of the Peace of Mind You Crave?

Does overthinking and worrying over every situation leave you agitated, restless, and on edge? Do you often put off doing things because you fear getting it wrong or not doing it perfectly? Or maybe catastrophizing over worst-case scenarios disrupts your sleep or triggers distressful physical symptoms?

Feeling overly anxious can suck the joy out of everything. Rather than experiencing the relaxation that comes with a quiet mind, you might have looping, intrusive thoughts that interfere with your ability to remain present in the moment and experience peace.

Even though you may have achieved success in your life and want nothing more than to enjoy your accomplishments, perhaps you can’t savor the moment due to ongoing worry, fear, guilt, shame, and self-doubt. Unable to relax even when things are going well, you might find yourself waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Anxiety Can Take Different Forms.

Not only can anxiety clog your mind, making it difficult to concentrate and be productive, but it can also affect your general sense of well-being, causing physical discomfort and emotional anguish. If you get anxious at work or in social settings, you may experience unpleasant symptoms such as a racing heart rate, upset stomach, or headaches.

To distract yourself from intrusive thoughts, you might spend hours scrolling on social media, binging Netflix, or attempt to self-soothe through over-eating or consuming alcohol. But trying to deny, ignore, or avoid anxious thoughts and feelings can lead to a build-up that eventually boils over into complete overwhelm or a panic episode.

You may wonder why you can’t control your anxiety. If only you could turn down the volume on anxious thoughts, you could breathe easier. Fortunately, therapy can equip you with the tools and insight you need to manage anxiety.

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Unsurprisingly, our uncertain world can give rise to a pervasive sense of unease that contributes to free-floating anxiety. Current global and national events have created an existential dread that’s hard to escape from. We are inundated with frightening news—such as natural disasters, global violence, political unrest, runaway inflation, and climate change—that can lead to feelings of uncertainty, fear, anxiety, and a loss of control over what the future holds.

What’s more, the advent of social media has added the potential of unhealthy self-comparison to our already status-driven culture.

It’s difficult to avoid comparing ourselves to the filtered and curated versions of life people portray on social media, leaving us feeling anxious about not meeting an unattainable ideal.

Heightened Anxiety Affects Almost One in Three Americans.

Anxiety is the most common mental health concern in the United States. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), “An estimated 31.1 percent of U.S. adults experience distressing levels of anxiety at some point in their life.” [1] Anxiety is a natural and generally adaptive human response that can help us remain alert to potential danger or threats. However, anxiety can become unmanageable when we respond to uncertain or vague threats in the same way that we would respond to an overtly dangerous situation.

Managing anxiety alone can be hard.

Most of us were not taught how to handle anxiety effectively. The coping skills we often use to comfort ourselves may only serve to distract us. However, avoiding or ignoring our symptoms can eventually exacerbate anxiety. Or perhaps our attempts to treat the symptoms superficially rather than address the underlying concerns that cause anxiety doesn’t get to the heart of the matter.

Working closely with a supportive therapist can provide you with the knowledge and insight you need to get your anxiety in check. Whether you experience social anxiety, panic episodes, or perfectionism, anxiety treatment can help.

Anxiety therapy can alleviate symptoms and address its root cause.

When you suffer from anxiety, you may often ask yourself, “Life’s not supposed to be this hard, right?” The answer is, it’s not. You can have an easier life. You see, anxiety is not a bad thing in and of itself.

In therapy, you can learn how to make friends with your anxiety and come to appreciate the supportive—not starring—role it should play in your life. Once anxiety becomes a normalized experience, you can check in with your body and mind to see how you’re feeling and make informed and grounded decisions from there.

What to Expect in Sessions

Our scheduling approach is designed to create a strong start in therapy by providing the structure and support needed for meaningful progress. In the first 8-10 weeks, we typically meet weekly to build trust, establish a solid foundation, and create momentum.

To encourage consistency, we typically schedule sessions in 2-3 month blocks. This helps to integrate therapy into your routine, allowing it to become a regular and valuable part of your schedule.

Initially, the priority will be to identify the most acute symptoms you’re experiencing and offer you coping skills and strategies for getting them under control. Once you’re feeling more sturdy, we can begin to identify the underlying reasons for why you get anxious.

Psychotherapy for anxiety may include:

Exploring underlying and historical factors that contribute to and maintain anxiety
Teaching self-soothing skills to cope with the distress associated with modern-day life that contributes to anxious feelings
Learning how anxiety manifests in the body so you can quickly identify and manage it before it gets out of control
Skill-building to regulate your emotions and make anxious reactions more proportionate to the situation
Establishing greater trust within yourself by shifting your beliefs to instill a sense of internal sturdiness and calm

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What Approaches Do We Use for Treating Anxiety?

We incorporate a variety of evidence-based modalities into anxiety disorder therapy. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is regarded as an effective treatment for anxiety. [2] Once we determine the predominant way your anxiety manifests—whether emotionally, cognitively, or physiologically—we can work backward to understand how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected and keep you stuck in the anxiety cycle. Breaking this loop can not only help diminish symptoms but also encourage more realistic, balanced thinking.

Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy can help identify core negative beliefs that contribute to anxiety and shift them to create a stronger sense of confidence in your ability to manage life and its stressors. Internal Family Systems (IFS) for anxiety will provide you with a better appreciation of the adaptive role anxiety has played in your life. Putting anxiety within the context of being merely one of many helpful parts of yourself aids in diminishing its power over your life.

Therapy can help you experience peace and calm again. You can build an effective repertoire of skills to cope with challenging thoughts, emotions, and body sensations. These anxiety-reducing strategies will help restore hope and lessen the chance of anxiety becoming overwhelming in the future.

But maybe you're not sure if anxiety therapy is right for you...

Can’t I take medication for anxiety instead of attending counseling?

Research indicates that therapy, medication, or a combination of both are the most effective treatment options for anxiety. [2] We recommend you consult with your medical doctor to determine which option is best for you. However, as opposed to only taking medication, anxiety counseling helps alleviate symptoms while also identifying the underlying and historical factors that maintain your symptoms and distress. Understanding what makes you anxious can lead to more effective solutions and a deeper sense of well-being and self-compassion.

Does online therapy for anxiety work?

It’s common to wonder if online anxiety counseling can be as effective as face-to-face sessions with a therapist. Many clients have opted for online therapy and found the results to be beneficial. Not only can it be more convenient, making it more likely that you can to attend anxiety therapy more regularly, but for some, virtual therapy for anxiety feels more comfortable since they can be in their home surrounded by what helps them feel safe and calm. We can determine which option works best for you.

Shouldn't I be able to manage anxiety without therapy?

Anxiety has a close friend called avoidance. Unfortunately, avoidance is very clever at posing questions that can keep you spinning in place rather than taking helpful steps toward effective solutions. Asking yourself why you can’t manage anxiety on your own will quickly derail your efforts to experience more peace and calm in your life. Everyone can benefit from objective support and expert guidance, and so can you.

Anxiety doesn’t have to run your life anymore.

If you’re ready to get your anxiety in check, our anxiety therapists are eager to help you. To book a FREE 15-minute phone consult or to schedule your first session, visit our contact page.