Do You Wish You Could Just Stop Worrying About Every Little Thing?
Is anxiety getting in the way of your true potential? When you look at the future, are you overwhelmed with dread or uncertainty? Do you worry that you’ll be alone forever and never enjoy fulfilling relationships?
Perhaps you’re struggling to make ends meet and you’re not sure that you’ll be able to take care of yourself. Or maybe you suffer from low self-esteem and you wonder if anyone will ever find you desirable. As much as you crave relationships, you may find that your anxiety prevents you from forming the connections you want.
In addition to impacting your mental and relational health, anxiety can even create physical symptoms. You may suffer from headaches, stomach aches, shortness of breath, or panic attacks. Perhaps you can barely sleep because of how stressed out you are. In the midst of your struggles, you may ask: Why can’t I just feel normal? Why do I have to obsessively worry about every little thing?
Anxiety Usually Stems From Unresolved Childhood Issues
Oftentimes, anxiety is the result of unresolved suffering in your past. If you experienced abandonment, betrayal, or abuse as a child, your relationships today may feel fraught with uncertainty. You may have a hard time trusting others, which makes it hard for you to get close to people.
Moreover, the ways you learned to cope with anxiety as a child may not work anymore. When you were young, shying away from stressful situations or relationships may have protected you. But as an adult, doing so may prevent you from taking chances and seizing on opportunities for growth.
In anxiety treatment, you have a chance to start afresh and learn new ways to cope with anxiety. My goal is to help you understand your anxiety and put it in its rightful place, allowing you to move forward with joy and assurance.
The Pressures Of Living In Our Society Today Only Exacerbate Our Stress
In the wake of a global pandemic, our whole planet has been going through a major trauma. Most of us are feeling a little more anxious now because of all the upheaval and uncertainty in our world. We’ve been forced to deal with multiple national crises in addition to our own personal mental health issues. It’s no wonder we’re all so stressed out.
What’s more, there is increasing pressure in our society to have it all together. We are expected to get married, raise a family, have a successful career, and conform to other societal norms. Social media inundates us with images of beautiful, happy people succeeding in life, making us feel less-than and left out. It’s as if we’re on the outside looking in—everyone else is having a good time while we’re the anxious and uncertain ones.
For Many People, The Idea Of Seeking Help Is Anxiety-Provoking
Although anxiety is the most common form of mental illness globally, affecting roughly 40 million adults in the US, only 36-percent of people with an anxiety disorder seek treatment. Why? Oftentimes, anxiety itself prevents many people from getting help. The idea of talking to someone about the condition can be stress-inducing for those who have social anxiety. They may even worry that their workplace will find out about their struggles and hold it against them.
On the other hand, many people are simply so deeply mired in anxiety that they don’t even know they’re suffering from it. To them, feeling stressed out is all they’ve ever known—how are they to know what it’s like to feel differently?
Because of all the barriers to seeking help, it’s tempting to try and ignore anxiety altogether. Unfortunately, refusing to address anxiety only gives the condition greater power over time. Through anxiety counseling, you can learn to confront your stress in a way that is safe, relaxing, and deeply empowering.
Anxiety Treatment Is A Chance To Express Yourself Authentically And Process Your Emotional Pain
I understand how intimidating it can be to go to counseling. That’s why I seek to create a safe space free of judgment and shame. I want you to be able to express yourself freely and authentically, without any of the constraints that you feel around others. Moreover, all of my sessions are held online, eliminating any shame that you might feel coming to the office.
There is no limit to what you can achieve as long as you are committed to overcoming your anxiety. After all, counseling is about processing your anxiety rather than stuffing it down. This means working through your stress, learning about where it comes from, and developing skills to manage it in daily life.
What To Expect In Sessions
A lot of the work I do is focused on relationships. This is because anxiety often stems from our relationships with our caregivers growing up. For instance, perhaps you grew up with overly critical parents and resisted speaking your mind because you feared punishment. As a child, this trauma adaption may have helped you stay safe. But as an adult, you may find that you shy away from relationships and struggle to stand up for yourself.
In therapy, my goal is to bring your adaptations to light and help you differentiate between the present and past. This means recognizing that what worked yesterday may not work today. Considering that, I want to help you develop new coping skills—strategies that are not rooted in past trauma, but rather in what brings you peace in the here and now.
Tailoring Your Treatment Plan
The skills we implement ultimately depends on what works best for you. We may use mindfulness techniques like meditation or breathing exercises to help you manage your anxiety. Mindfulness allows you to slow down and notice what’s going on internally, paying attention to how your thoughts and feelings contribute to your stress. And learning to regulate any unhealthy thoughts and feelings can help you control anxious habits and behaviors in your life.
Additionally, I often do a lot of inner-child work. Connecting to your inner child means tending to parts of yourself that were wounded or neglected when you were young. If your life lacked love and acceptance when you were young, we will work on helping you love and accept yourself today. In this way, you can address the longstanding anxieties that trauma created.
In the end, therapy is not a chance to run from anxiety—it’s a time to be present with your anxiety, get to know it, and learn to balance it with healthier emotions. Self-awareness is the key to all healing. By understanding where your anxiety comes from and how it’s affecting you, you can liberate yourself from the grip it has on your life.
You May Have Some Questions About Anxiety Treatment…
Is therapy going to make my anxiety worse?
If your anxiety ever feels worse during sessions, we will use calming exercises to help you relax. That said, therapy is about processing your emotional pain rather than running from it. Initially, confronting your anxiety may feel a little uncomfortable. But getting to the root of your fears is the only way to soothe them. Just like a physical wound, an emotional wound can only heal if you actively treat it.
Are people at my workplace going to find out about me being in therapy?
My counseling sessions are 100-percent confidential. No one else has to know about you being here. What’s more, virtual therapy allows you to engage in counseling sessions from anywhere, ensuring that there is maximum privacy on your end and my end.
Is virtual therapy actually helpful?
In my experience, clients love telehealth just as much as in-person counseling. That said, if you are hesitant about virtual therapy, we can do one session together just to try it out. If you decide you don’t like it, I won’t bill you or your insurance for it. We can start out by simply testing the waters and go from there.
Let Me Help You Learn New Skills For Managing Anxiety
If you’re tired of living in fear and uncertainty, I would be honored to help you learn to de-stress and heal from the pain of the past. To get started, you can call me at 561-220-4567 for a free, 15-minute phone consultation. You can also text, email me, or use the contact page.
