Therapy Can Help You Learn to Manage Your Anxiety
• Does a sense of constant dread preoccupy your thoughts?
• Is a desire to appear as “having it all together” preventing you from establishing meaningful connections with others or making progress in your life?
• Are you unable to experience joy or happiness as a result of always anticipating the worst-case scenario?
It may feel as though you can never achieve a sense of presence or peace. Perhaps your relationships, responsibilities, and everyday life are being impacted due to an ongoing sense of restlessness or lack of focus on what’s in front of you.
Your anxiety may have manifested in imposter syndrome that causes you to believe that you are not good or worthy of the opportunities you’ve been offered. As a result, you may feel overly concerned with proving yourself or impressing others out of fear of being judged or rejected.
Perhaps it feels like your brain is a motor that never turns off. You may be experiencing physical and cognitive symptoms like insomnia, stomach aches, headaches, and forgetfulness. And during particularly anxious periods, you may develop symptoms of panic such as chest pain, dizziness, and shortness of breath. In more severe cases, you may feel physically in danger.
Such worries and fears can imprison you into feeling like nothing is within your control and that things will never get better. All you wish is to simply catch a break, be able to live in the moment, and find a sense of happiness and confidence rather than dread and worry all the time.
Respite from your worry is possible—and it’s closer than you might think. Treatment with a therapist at bareWell can provide you with the clarity and guidance you need for overcoming anxiety.
All Of Us Are Subjected To Tense And Stressful Circumstances
Events like preparing for a job interview or a first date can create situational anxiety during which we experience relatively mild and fleeting sensations of worry. However, as symptoms worsen and become more chronic it may be a signal to us that there is an underlying mental health issue in need of support and help.
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) estimates that 3.1 percent of adults in the US struggle with generalized anxiety disorder, though less than half of that population seeks treatment. Because sensations of worry and fear are directly related to stress, we can only assume the rates of anxiety among adults have increased in tandem with the instances of political unrest, collective trauma, and global emergency that we’re seeing unravel in real-time.
In addition, certain professions and life circumstances are likely to yield symptoms of anxiety. Young professionals in high-pressure jobs may experience performance anxiety or perfectionism that spill into every aspect of their lives. Parents frequently feel overwhelmed by all of the demands placed on them and struggle with constant worry, wondering if they are doing everything necessary to raise healthy, responsible children.
Meanwhile, those in military, law enforcement, and first responder positions are subjected to the mental stress and potential of bodily harm associated with the job, as well as public scrutiny that heightens tension in the workplace. These professions are so often subjected to situations of life-or-death that can easily threaten a sense of composure and emotional resilience.
In such professions—and in other prevalent aspects of our culture—there is an expectation to “man up” and be strong when things become stressful. Soon, what’s happening internally becomes incongruent with what appears on the outside, and eventually, space is created where anxiety thrives, pushing us to succeed, overcome, and keep up with others at the expense of our well-being.
This pressure and worry can feel like it belongs to you and you alone, but anxiety is widely pervasive. And your therapist at bareWell will cultivate a place to feel validated in your experience while providing you with tools for coping with stress and anxiety.
Anxiety Treatment Reorganizes And Adjusts Your Emotional Realities
Your anxiety did not just appear out of nowhere, and it is something that can be managed with therapeutic treatment. In a collaborative and nonjudgmental environment, we offer you the opportunity to explore the core of your anxiety symptoms and learn strategies to help you feel more in control of your stress and fear responses.
Our team of clinicians draws from an integrative approach that fuses cognitive behavioral therapies with mindfulness, emotional regulation skills, attachment based approach to understanding origins of your anxiety and strength-based exercises that can empower you to re-establish a healthy relationship with your thoughts, feelings, and actions.
And while Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and other modalities are scientifically validated for anxiety treatment, the studies of John Norcross have demonstrated that the greatest determining factor for a client’s success in treatment and finding relief is the feeling of a genuine and trusted connection with their therapist.
We at bareWell live by this philosophy and devote time to the process by getting to know you through an initial consultation and intake that allows us to establish your goals and needs for therapy. We will foster a safe environment where you’ll be free to explore your fears as you gain insight into which behaviors help and which ones are merely exacerbating your anxiety. And as we get more familiar with your experiences, you’ll be given individually-tailored tools to manage your daily functioning and strategies for coping.
Distress tolerance and emotional regulation are possible when you understand why anxiety symptoms manifest and how your experiences have shaped your mindset. If you allow yourself to become vulnerable in exploring your feelings, you’ll be able to make better sense of how they’re contributing to sensations of overwhelm, accumulating stress, and anxiety.
You don’t have to live life on edge waiting for the next shoe to drop. Instead, consider investing in yourself and your peace of mind by committing to anxiety treatment at bareWell. Our experienced and culturally-competent team is ready to show you what life can look like without the burden of constant fear and worry.
A way out is possible, and therapy is the first step in finding your freedom.
Maybe you’re ready to try out therapy for anxiety, but you have questions…
Can’t I just treat my anxiety with medication?
Of course, medications are always an option when it comes to treating anxiety, but they alone aren’t the cure for all of your symptoms. While medication can offer short-term relief, we do know that the best avenue for long-term healing, growth, and success is to experience the emotional support of a mental health professional who can help you develop coping skills for managing anxiety. In fact, research shows that anxiety treatment using medication is much more effective when paired with talk therapy. Moreover, if you rely on meds alone, you run the risk of feeling the same way you did before once you stop taking them.
How can counseling help me to mitigate anxiety and change a mindset that I have had for as long as I can remember?
Sure, some folks are born with temperaments that are more predisposed towards anxious thinking, but this is not a mindset that just appears out of nowhere—your anxiety has an origin. And it probably stems from a thought process centered around an automatic response to stress has been so deeply ingrained that it now feels like an inherent part of your being.
However, therapy helps you to navigate the complexities of life no matter your disposition. Through counseling you can arrive at a place where you can acknowledge that, while adverse experiences may negatively impact you, you do have the ability to take control of your emotions and change the automatic responses that fuel your anxiety.
How long does anxiety treatment take?
All of our treatment approaches are individualized, and there is no one-size-fits-all formula for overcoming anxiety. Your success in therapy will depend on how much you devote to cultivating and practicing skills outside of session. Treatment is a process that requires commitment. And while every person’s timeline for anxiety treatment looks different, we typically see the quickest improvements in symptom reduction in clients who incorporate the skills and strategies we provide into their daily lives.
Let Go Of The Mental Burden Weighing You Down
If burdensome life stressors and constant anxiety are preventing you from getting pleasure out of life, anxiety treatment with the therapists at bareWell can help you find coping strategies and relief. For more information or to schedule a free, 15-minute consultation, fill out our contact form or get started by scheduling your screening today. We look forward to connecting with you soon!
Please note that during COVID-19, all sessions are conducted virtually.
