Are Anxiety, Worry Or Fears Interrupting Your Daily Life?
Are you feeling overwhelmed, tense and constantly on edge? Is your mind filled with racing thoughts? Is it hard for you to relax even though you may be feeling exhausted? Do you lie awake at night as your mind goes over and over the same worrisome scenarios?
You may be plagued by irrational fears that something bad will happen if you don’t do things in a certain way. Maybe you have experienced sudden attacks of panic that left you overwhelmed by distressing physical and emotional symptoms, and now you have to avoid certain situations to prevent having another panic attack. You might be concerned that you are experiencing a serious medical issue as you manage a racing heart beat, nausea, trembling, sweating, muscle tension and shortness of breath. Or, you might feel a general sense of worry and apprehension even though you cannot specify what danger may be waiting around the corner.
Do you wish you could stay in control of your emotions, thoughts and bodily sensations? Do you long to live a more peaceful and contented life?
You Are Not Alone In Your Struggle With Anxiety
We all feel afraid and worried at times. Our brains are wired to detect danger and mobilize natural reactions of fight, flight or freeze. These reactions help us to protect ourselves from real and perceived threats. However, if you feel like your fears and worries control your life, interfere with the pursuit of important goals or harm your important relationships you might be struggling with anxiety.
Sadly, anxiety and chronic stress have become common features of modern life. According to the Anxiety Disorders Association of Canada, anxiety disorders are the most prevalent emotional problem affecting Canadian adults. In fact, one in four Canadians will suffer from anxiety at some point in their lifetime. The numerous spoken and unspoken expectations we all face, the influence of social media, economic insecurity and other relentless pressures can leave our internal alarm system in a permanent “ON” position. Living in a state of constant tension and stress can leave us exhausted, affect our health and damage our relationships.
Untreated anxiety has the potential to rob us of our inner freedom and peace. However, with the help of an experienced therapist, anxiety can be effectively treated. Anxiety therapy can help you learn to recognize and overcome your worries and fears and live a calmer, more peaceful life.
You Can Foster A Sense Of Peace And Calm With Anxiety Treatment
Anxiety treatment can help you manage difficult emotions and situations so you can feel calm and in control. In addition to developing practical tools you can use to obtain immediate relief from your discomfort, you can discover the underlying reasons you are experiencing anxiety or fear. You may be surprised how effective learning a few new techniques can be in helping you mitigate symptoms of anxiety. Working together, we will identify the triggers for your anxiety and give you the resources you need to take control of difficult thoughts and emotions. By learning how to relax, how to look at things in new and less frightening ways and how to approach situations that used to make you nervous with calm confidence, you can find meaningful and lasting relief.
What Happens In Therapy?
While our first goal during therapy will be to help you find relief from symptoms so you can start enjoying a less fearful life, there is much more to anxiety treatment. Anxiety is different for everyone, and you will need to understand what your anxiety is all about. You may have experienced a traumatic event that left you feeling mistrustful and on guard. More often, however, anxiety develops as the result of a combination of factors rather than a single issue or event, including adversity growing up, work stress or relationship difficulties and physical health problems.
Anxiety therapy can help you identify the causes of anxiety and develop tools for dealing with difficult life circumstances. At times, the best approach to managing your struggles will be to accept those things that you cannot change. When we travel the territory of acceptance and letting go, the support of a therapist who understands you and who cares about your well being, can be invaluable.
You may believe that you could benefit from anxiety treatment, but still have a few questions and concerns…
“I have struggled with anxiety for a long time. I think that it is my personality and it cannot be changed.”
You are right when you observe that certain personality traits make us more susceptible to anxiety. For example, being sensitive to criticism, having very high standards and striving for perfection can set us up for anxiety problems. However, no matter how long you’ve struggled with anxiety, there is help and hope for relief. I incorporate research-validated anxiety treatment methods that can free you from even the most severe anxiety symptoms. Working in therapy will equip you with tools and techniques that are tailored to your specific needs and interests; tools that you need to live a calmer and more fulfilling life. Remember the words of the famous painter Georgia O’Keefe: “I have been terrified every moment of my life and it has never stopped me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.”
“Why can’t I take medication to alleviate my anxiety? Do I really need to enter therapy?”
While there are a number of prescribed medications for anxiety, they do not offer a long term solution. If your anxiety symptoms are severe and disabling, it may be necessary to talk to your physician about prescription medication. But, to achieve long term relief, you will need knowledge, tools and skills to address the causes of your anxiety and the factors that are keeping you in a state of chronic worry and stress. Working with a therapist will allow you to actively control your healing process and learn strategies to prevent relapse.
“If I seek help for anxiety, I’m worried that people in my life will judge me.”
It is common in our culture to go to great lengths to improve our physical health, but when it comes to emotional struggles we are expected to “snap out of it.” Fortunately these attitudes are slowly changing. Living in a chronic state of stress feels awful and is harmful to your physical health. Anxiety triggers a fight or flight response releasing a flood of chemicals and hormones like adrenaline into your system. If this happens often or lasts for a long time it can lead to a host of physical problems like high blood pressure, digestive problems or heart disease. You deserve to do what is right for you. Additionally, your therapy is confidential and no one needs to know about it unless you choose to tell them. That said, your friends and family would probably be happy to know that you have made the decision to positively change your life.
“I am concerned about spending time and money on anxiety treatment. Will it be worth the investment?”
You can think of the money and time you spend on anxiety treatment as an investment in your life. Anxiety may be holding you back from building meaningful relationships, accomplishing career goals, having fun and getting a good night’s rest. It can erode your self-confidence and hope for a better future. By addressing your anxiety in therapy, you can free yourself from the hold it has over you and your life and start building a future you truly desire.
You Can Find Balance, Peace And Resilience
If you are ready to find relief from anxiety and reclaim your life as your own, I am ready to help. I offer a free 20 minute telephone consultation if you would like to learn more about my approach and how I can help you.
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For more than 20 years I have been helping adults, teens, couples and families find pathways to more satisfying lives. I will listen to you with compassion and help you see possibilities for recovery and growth where you see none. Together, we can quickly but systematically discover and remove obstacles that are holding you back from living the life you were meant to live.