Therapy for Anxiety
Your mind is constantly somewhere else. Whether reminiscing about the past or worrying about the future, you never have the chance to just sit and be. Maybe you don’t even remember what this feels like. Maybe it feels like you’ve never known any different.
A part of you desperately wishes you could turn the volume down on the anxious, nagging, guilty voice at the back of your mind, constantly reciting a shopping list of worry. Memories of a social event in which you drank a little too much, an upcoming presentation at work, an argument with your brother, a breakup that happened 3 years ago. To the anxious mind, every item is equally stressful, urgent, threatening. A part of you can’t imagine what it would be like to live without high stress, how you’d get anything done at all. Letting go of the worry might sound like an unbearable catch-22.
How common is Anxiety?
Almost one in four Australians will experience anxiety at some stage in their lives, yet so many are suffering in silence, at times not even knowing what it means to live without a constant state of ill-ease and nervous tension.
the difference between anxiety and stress
Whilst anxiety and stress share emotional and physical symptoms, their origins may be different. Generally, stress is a response to an external factor, such as a tight deadline at work or having an argument with your partner, and is largely resolved by addressing the problem directly with behaviour changes. Examples of effective chronic stress management may involve: physical activity, adequate sleep, nutrition, relaxation or breathing exercises, effective time management or problem solving.
Anxiety describes a person’s ongoing pattern of responding to the stress: its origin is internal. Anxiety involves a more detailed web of behaviours, thoughts, beliefs and emotional responses to an event. Unlike acute stress, anxiety persists even after a stressful event or concern has been resolved.
Anxiety is also different to healthy forms of manageable stress. ‘Healthy stress’ is completely normal and vital for overcoming obstacles, problem-solving and getting things done. With a short burst of energy, healthy stress can motivate us to achieve goals, leading to more fulfilment and success in our lives.
Long-term stress that sticks around for months, however, is rarely helpful. Instead, ongoing stress and anxiety has been linked to wear and tear on your immune system, contributing to high blood pressure, exhaustion, depression, anxiety and heart disease.
People experiencing anxiety often describe a persistent sense of worry and a feeling of being ‘always on edge.’ They may require support with fears that are specific (eg. a phobia) or more general worry, stress and obsessive patterns of rumination.
Some of the most common types of anxiety include:
Generalised Anxiety Disorder
Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) affects about 5% of the population. The onset of GAD can be at a relatively early age, with one third of people with GAD experiencing onset in childhood or adolescence. GAD is often chronic, but may have only a moderate impact on a person's ability to function in daily life.
The main feature of GAD is excessive anxiety and worry, occurring more days than not for at least six months, about a number of events or activities such as those related to work or study performance, health, finances or family issues. The worries are often about a variety of minor issues and events that are unlikely to occur.
Realistic anxiety, such as financial concerns after losing a job, are not signs of GAD, but consistent, excessive chronic worry about certain events that are unlikely to occur is cause for concern. You may also find it extremely difficult to control the worry. Generally, these worries are future-oriented, i.e., about what might happen, rather than what is happening. An intolerance of uncertainty, risk and lack of control is common amongst in people experiencing GAD.
The anxiety and worry in GAD is accompanied by other physical and emotional symptoms such as: restlessness or feeling on edge; being easily fatigued; difficulty in concentrating or mind going blank; irritability; muscle tension; shallow, uneven breathing; and sleep disturbance. Other symptoms include: an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, feeling nauseous or sick, trembling and shaking and feeling as though you are going crazy and losing control. In some cases, people deal with the excessive, constant anxiety through the over use of alcohol, recreational or non-prescription drugs.
Social Anxiety
For people with social anxiety disorder (or social phobia), social situations bring feelings that go far beyond simple anxiety or nervousness.
The anxiety may be so extreme and debilitating that it interferes with their daily life, work, or education, family and social life.
People with social anxiety disorder may often avoid feared situations or endure them with intense distress. For people with social anxiety disorder the key element is severe anxiety and worry about social interactions due to a persistent fear that people are thinking about them in a negative way, or fear of behaving in a way that may cause feelings of embarrassment or humiliation. The anxiety is experienced in situations where the person believes that he/she is being scrutinised or observed by others.
For some people the anxiety can lead to panic-like symptoms, which may include heart palpitations, blushing, trembling, nausea, faintness and profuse sweating. The anxiety usually triggers anxious thoughts about the feared social situations and contributes to a person's distress and difficulty performing in such situations.
Thoughts and beliefs which are commonly associated with social anxiety disorder include: "I look out of place" "What if I sound stupid" "I'm making a fool of myself" "I'm inferior to more talkative people" "People will notice me blushing"
People with social anxiety disorder may recognise that the social anxiety is excessive and unreasonable but feel unable to change the feelings or behaviour. Living with social anxiety disorder can have a devastating affect on a person's self-esteem. People often experience feelings of inferiority, a hypersensitivity to criticism, negative evaluation, or rejection, and find it difficult to be assertive.
For some people, social anxiety disorder may be selective - they may have an intense fear of public speaking, for example, but be comfortable in other social or performance situations. These specific social phobias are focused on a particular area of anxiety and generally are related to worries about performance. Other people may experience a more generalised social anxiety and have several social phobias about a variety of social or performance situations in which they may be observed.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorder is characterised by the presence of recurrent and unpredictable panic attacks and persistent worry and fear that you will have another one. You may also find yourself worrying about the implications of a panic attack (such as thinking that the panic attack is a sign of an undiagnosed medical problem). Following a series of panic attacks, people often describe making significant changes in their behaviour that relate to the panic attacks (such as avoiding a potential trigger for panic, avoiding activities that increase the heart rate, like exercise).
Panic attacks reach a peak within about 10 minutes and usually last for up to half an hour, leaving you feeling tired or exhausted. They can occur several times a day or may happen only once every few years. A panic attack may involve four or more of the following symptoms:
Feeling of choking or struggling to breath
Dizziness, unsteady feelings or faintness
Pounding heart or accelerated heart rate
Trembling or shaking
Sweating
Nausea or abdominal discomfort
Numbness or tingling sensations
Flushes or chills
Feelings of unreality and detachment from self or the environment
Fear of dying, ‘going crazy’ or doing something uncontrolled.
Therapy for Anxiety
Whilst experiencing panic and anxiety can feel deeply distressing, the good news is that they are amongst the most treatable mental health conditions. Anxiety and panic are also two of the most common issues I encounter in my practice.
Effective therapy can reduce the levels of anxiety you experience and help you counter the associated psychological and physical discomfort. I use a combination of highly effective techniques and therapy to help reduce the severity of symptoms, such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, general counselling, relaxation and stress management techniques, exercise, meditation, lifestyle adjustments and managing associated issues (such as difficulty with setting healthy boundaries, assertive communication or substance abuse).
I will guide you through practicing stress management techniques in session, as this is a fantastic way to experiment with new ways to reduce your physical response to anxiety. These may include breathing techniques specific to managing panic attacks, progressive muscle relaxation, visualisation and meditation training.
Through anxiety therapy:
You will learn effective tools and strategies to become grounded quickly when feeling overwhelmed by panic. We will practice these in your sessions and devise ways to experiment with them in your everyday life
We will explore the impact of guided meditation and relaxation strategies in reducing your baseline levels of day-to-day stress so that you are less vulnerable to extreme spikes in anxiety
You will learn to recognise the vicious cycle of worry-thinking and the way it impacts your functioning in different areas of your life- sleep, relationships, academic performance, work, etc.
You will regain a sense of control over the things in life that cause you to worry or feel upset
You will learn to focus on being more present in the moment
You will be able to live a fuller life with fewer worries
You will enjoy more social interactions with family and friends
You will feel more confident engaging in meaningful goals and the activities that you use to enjoy