Therapy for Anxiety
Do you experience intense anxiety or nervousness when faced with social situations?
Do you fear being judged or criticized by others?
Are you always worried about making mistakes, looking bad, or being embarrassed in front of your coworkers or others?
Do you avoid social gatherings, places, or people because of your fear or anxiety?
Do you fear being judged or criticized by others?
How would your life be different if your anxiety was reduced or if you worried less?
How would your life be different if you were able to face new challenges with less worry and more confidence?
While it is normal to feel nervous in some social situations, people who experience daily anxiety tend to avoid everyday interactions that cause them significant fear, anxiety, self-consciousness, and embarrassment because they fear being scrutinized or judged by others.
At some point in our lives, most of us will experience anxiety. It’s a natural reaction to many stressors such as starting a new job, taking final exams, and becoming a new parent. Now for many people, the anxiety will subside once the stressors go away. But for others, anxiety becomes persistent and even excessive, even without stressors, interfering with daily life. In these cases, the person is diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.
Types of Anxiety Disorders
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, roughly 31% of adults in this country will experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their life. At Unique we specialize in treating the following disorders;
Anxiety disorders include:
- Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Panic disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Social anxiety disorder
- Agoraphobia
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
With this disorder, people worry excessively about ordinary, everyday situations and events. During this time the affected person expects the worst to happen, even when there is no evidence that it will.
Social Anxiety Disorder
People with Social Anxiety Disorder often experience significant distress in the following situations:·
- Being teased or criticized
- Being the center of attention
- Being watched or observed while completing a task
- Having to say something in a formal, public setting
- Meeting people in authority, such as important people or authority figures
- Feeling insecure and out of place in social situations
- Embarrassing easily
- Meeting other people’s eyes
Symptoms of Anxiety disorders;
- Anxiety can trigger symptoms such as:
- Excessive fear and worrying
- Restlessness
- Agitation
- Panic, fear and feeling uneasiness
- Irrational fear of danger
- Racing thoughts
- Shortness of breath or rapid breathing
- Sleep issues/ Lack of sleep
- Insomnia
- Headache
- Pounding/ racing thoughts
- Trembling
- Muscle tension
- Feeling out of control due to anxiety
- Constant fear or worry
- Dizziness
- Chest pain
- Stomach discomfort
- Feeling uneasy or unreality
- Fatigue
- Avoiding places, things or people
- Difficulty concentrating
- Irritability
How is Anxiety Treated?
Any of us will rarely get through life without experiencing anxiety at some point. However, some people have the burden of dealing with anxiety daily. Whether it’s over something big or insignificant, anxiety stops us from living a normal life full of joy and potential. If you are suffering from an anxiety disorder, life may feel overwhelming most of the time. But know that there is help out there for you. Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, can reduce or eliminate your uncomfortable symptoms.
Our Approach to Anxiety
The most common form of treatment is a combination of drug therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Of course, there are plenty of alternative options, such as deep breathing, acupuncture, and other relaxation techniques, that have helped our clients find calm and peace. We take a psycho-educational approach to help you understand how anxiety works, identify your triggers and how to address and cope through various coping skills, anxiety management, and relaxation techniques. Whether it is Social anxiety, generalized anxiety, worry or severe panic attacks, we will work together to formulate a plan to help you learn new coping strategies on how to manage, anxiety and stress. CBT as a treatment for anxiety includes providing Psychoeducation and developing a functional analysis and a cognitive approach. Using the CBT approach, the therapist will help the client to turn their anxious thoughts and feelings into more rational ones. CBT techniques have been developed to deal with specific disorders. For example, people with panic disorder can benefit from learning new breathing and meditation techniques, which can help them deal with their anxiety. The therapist teaches the client the process of CBT. One of the most fundamental techniques in CBT is questioning (Ronen & Freeman, 2007).
This intervention will help the client recognize any distorted thinking by using Socratic questioning. Another intervention technique used is homework to do through journaling and thought recording. The client brings the completed journal to the weekly sessions to discuss with the counsellor.
Here are a few points that may help you begin to reduce your anxiety:
- Recognize You Are in Control
When you are in the grips of anxiety, it feels very much like it has total control over you. But the reality is, you are in control. While external events can trigger our emotions, ultimately, we have the choice of whether we feel those emotions or not. So the good news is, you don’t have to suffer from anxiety, you simply have to decide to show it who’s boss - Diaphragmatic breathing
This physical strategy is very helpful to relax in stressful situations. While breathing, focus on breathing into the belly while keeping your shoulders down and relaxed. As opposed to expanding your chest, focus on letting your abdomen expand while inhaling. - Move Your Body
Exercise is a great way to alleviate the muscle tension that goes along with chronic anxiety. Plus, exercise releases feel-good chemicals in your body like serotonin. But don’t sweat it, you don’t have to do a gruelling workout at the gym to gain these benefits. Just a half hour a day of walking, biking, swimming or yoga can significantly help reduce your anxiety. - Start a Gratitude Journal
Get into the habit of writing down three to five things you are grateful for each night before retiring. This is a simple way to train your mind to focus on all of the good that surrounds you. - Speak with a professional
The cure for any physical or psychological ailment is to get to the root cause of it, not simply manage the symptoms. A therapist can help you access your inner world to uncover what is triggering your fear and also offer coping tools and strategies.
If you or a loved one is interested in exploring treatment, please contact me today. At Unique, we would be happy to speak with you about how we may be able to help.
Learning how to relax, yoga, exercise regularly, muscle relaxation, prayer and deep breathing can all help you deal with your anxieties. The therapist may also help you to confront the things that have made you worry or anxious in the past.
Together, we may start by making a list and then picturing ourselves confronting these situations and being free from constant worry.
If you or someone you care about is experiencing constant worry or anxiety please reach out to our Therapy office /clinic for a phone consult to determine if one of our therapists may be the right fit to help you address your anxiety symptoms.
If you’d like to explore therapy options, please reach out to our Edmonton or Sherwood Park office. Life can get better. Anxiety disorders can be successfully treated.
Other Adult Therapy Services at Unique Psychology & Consulting
As an Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan and Sherwood Park counselling clinic, we offer a variety of therapy services. Other common mental health concerns our counselors treat include; Anger Management, Relationship issues, Faith-based Therapy, BIPOP Therapy, Depression and life Transition Therapy. We also offer Solution-focused Therapy (SFT), & DBT. We also provide Employment assistance therapy, Career Counseling and online and Video Therapy, Canada-wide. If you don’t see the issue you are looking for listed, please reach out, and contact Unique Psychology & Consulting to see if we may be able to help you with your unique situation.
We look forward to helping you live your best life!
SOURCES:
https://www.healthline.com/health/anxiety/types-of-anxiety
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-cube/202204/4-types-anxiety
