Let’s face it—you’re exhausted. Always worried about what the future holds, you are preoccupied with controlling the outcome of every situation you’re in. Yet, no matter what you do, it often feels like your efforts aren’t enough. Frankly, your inner critic might as well be Number One on your speed dial because they are constantly in communication with you.

Feelings of fear and anxiety are regular occurrences, leaving you to avoid otherwise enjoyable situations, like making friends with someone you just met or having a new, adventurous experience. This makes you question just about everything, and your worries tend to get stuck and replayed in your head like the melody of a catchy pop song. You become tense just thinking about everything on your plate, from regrets and mistakes to your current to-do list that seems to be never-ending. You are desperate to relax—you just haven’t figured out how. 

You’re Probably Used To “Shoulding” All Over Yourself…

Anxiety has a way of interfering with the ability to be happy and enjoy life. No matter how you identify—young or old, single or partnered, child-free or a parent—persistent anxiety breeds self-doubt in every aspect of your daily life and relationships. Frequently asking yourself am I good enough?, you likely struggle to feel confident in your choices. This naturally impacts your ability to be present with your partner, children, friends, coworkers—and yourself—as you constantly manage unmet expectations between how things are and how they “should” be. 

If you could achieve that feeling of peace, satisfaction, and self-acceptance, you would finally be able to relax and let go of the noise. Fortunately, in therapy for anxiety, you can learn to stop listening to your inner critic and, instead, put them on Do Not Disturb.

Anxiety Changes Our Brain’s Response To Stress And Worry

Anxiety is the most common mental health struggle, with over 40 million adults affected in the US alone. It’s hard to pinpoint one specific cause for anxiety, as everything from childhood trauma or loss to significant life transitions to cultural and social stressors can be catalysts for symptoms. When we feel out of control in any situation, we can develop a learned stress response that kicks our body into fight, flight, or freeze whenever we sense danger—regardless of whether the threat is real or not. 

And while anxiety fosters a sense of shame, embarrassment, and isolation, it is not something that can be treated in solitary. Rather, the more we live without processing that internalized shame and fear in the presence of a trained therapist, the more ingrained the anxiety becomes. 

You are not weak or incompetent for seeking treatment for anxiety. In counseling, you will learn how to harness strengths, manage stress, and foster self-acceptance so that anxiety can have less of a hold on your everyday life. 

You Can Adjust Your Response To Anxiety In Therapy

Anxiety has distracted you from your greatest hopes and desires, but therapy is a chance to develop a new, more peaceful relationship with your past, present, and future. By exploring your innermost thoughts and fears with a trained, nonjudgmental therapist, you can learn to overcome anxiety and enjoy life once more. 

My Approach

I aim to make anxiety treatment a trusted, exploratory, and collaborative experience. During our initial therapy sessions, we will get to know each other and work towards developing a rapport so that you can practice relaxing and feeling safe. I’ll learn more about what has and hasn’t worked for you in the past so that counseling can be customized for your specific needs and goals.

As a therapist specializing in anxiety, my main objective is to get your nervous system to exhale. We will do this by creating body-based awareness, enhancing mindfulness, and developing methods for self-soothing. Serenity is something that you will need to train yourself in cultivating, so our sessions are likely to involve progressive muscle relaxation, guided meditation or imagery, and exposure therapy to help you practice managing anxiety. 

In addition to holistic, body-based, and behavioral approaches, I am pleased to offer Brainspotting in treatment for anxiety. This gentle method, which involves focusing the eyes on a specific point to ease feelings of stress and fear, can help you to rewire your brain’s stress response neurologically. Soon, you will be able to effectively integrate your body’s fight, flight, or freeze response with a more connected, relational, and rational way of existing in the world. 

Not only will therapy help you to identify the relationship between early experiences, triggers, and anxiety symptoms, but you’ll also be able to look forward to the future, knowing you are equipped with the coping strategies needed to thrive. Enhancing your ability to regulate stress and emotions can solve problems and help you feel at home in your mind and body again. Working together, we can support your inner critic taking a vacation from constantly hijacking your every thought and move! 

Maybe You’re Still Not Sure If You Will Benefit From Counseling For Anxiety…