Struggling with Anxiety? How Therapy Can Help
Though anxiety is there to help in times of stress (i.e. alert you of a potential dangerous situation ahead), some of us may get stuck in an anxiety spiral when dealing with a perceived threat (i.e. losing a job, surprise medical expenses, failing a class, etc). Perfectionists often struggle with anxious thoughts such as fear of making mistakes, fear of embarrassment, fear of making wrong decisions, and more. As you can imagine, living with anxiety can be exhausting. Without proper problem-solving and coping strategies in place, anxiety can get the better of us. The good news is, psychotherapy can help reduce anxious symptoms and behaviors.
How can therapy help with anxiety?
Therapy can put an end to the vicious cycle of anxiety. When it comes to anxiety, we can easily get stuck in the “what if’s” and think of all the worst possible outcomes to various situations (our brain can be pretty imaginative and creative). Through therapy such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, you can learn how to assess and evaluate the validity of those thoughts, and replace them with healthier, more balanced perspectives. This way, it won’t feel like anxiety is controlling you any longer.
Therapy provides individualized treatment plans for anxiety. What works for one person may not work for others. By attending therapy, qualified mental health professionals will assess and continually evaluate your needs and provide you with the most appropriate evidence-based strategies to help you manage anxiety better. A lot of coping strategies for anxiety can be found easily online nowadays, which can be a great way to start your journey to well-being, but it will not provide the customized treatment one needs in order to effectively and efficiently deal with their stressors head-on. The techniques that therapist can teach can range from mindfulness, relaxation exercises, exposure therapy, and stress management.
Therapy is not a band-aid approach in treating anxiety. Therapy focuses on finding the root to the presenting symptoms and issues at hand. Often, anxiety disorders are found to be rooted in past trauma. Therefore, receiving trauma-informed care such as EMDR (eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing) may be effective in providing more long-term relief from symptoms of anxiety.
Therapy can help with building self-awareness around anxiety. By meeting with a mental health professional on a regular (usually weekly) basis, you can develop more self-awareness and insight into your thoughts and feelings. By doing so, you are more likely to understand where your experiences come from and what you can do about it. You are less likely to subconsciously repeat old patterns when you develop awareness into your patterns of thinking and behaviors. Thus, you are more likely to feel in control of your thoughts and feelings, and who wouldn’t want that?
In conclusion, anxiety can in some cases feel debilitating. Know that you are not alone in your experience and that this does not have to be a “forever” experience for you. Qualified mental health professionals with proper training and education in treating anxiety disorders can help many individuals alleviate their symptoms. So don't wait any longer to get the support you need. Life can get better.
If this post resonates with you and you are interested in exploring perfectionism and/or to see if we’re a good fit to work together, please reach out via my contact form on my website. I’m also always happy to provide referrals in the community.
Cheers,
Dr. Jessica
