Looking For Anxiety Treatment?
Are you experiencing racing thoughts? Do you feel overwhelmed? Is sleeping soundly a thing of the past? Simply put, if you answered yes to these three questions, you might be experiencing anxiety. Symptoms of anxiety range from minor worrying to full blown panic attacks and not functioning properly. Debilitating social anxiety could make you avoid important situations. Also, maybe anxiety is affecting your work performance. Overall, whether it’s a little bit of anxiety or a lot, anxiety treatment can help.
Symptoms of Anxiety
Excessive Worrying
Feeling Nervous
Trouble Sleeping
Agitation
Difficulty Concentrating
Tiredness
Body Tension
Sweating
Upset Stomach
Panic Attacks
Social Phobia
Irrational Fears
Hyper Arousal
Derealization/Depersonalization
Anxiety Syndromes & Subtypes
Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors (Trichotillomania/ hair pulling, nail biting, skin picking)
Panic Disorder
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Derealization/Depersonalization Disorder
Phobias- Claustrophobia
More….
Anxiety Disorders Are Common
In the United States, anxiety disorders affect 40 million adults. In fact, anxiety is the most common mental illness in the country. Having anxiety could be a result of childhood trauma such as bullying or an unstable home and family life. It could also arise from a recent event that was distressing. In addition, anxiety may even run in your family. Overall, symptoms of anxiety can pop up due to many life circumstances and a variety of factors.
Unfortunately, many adults do not seek treatment for their anxiety symptoms. Subsequently, many adults self treat anxiety with alcohol, illegal drugs, overuse of prescription drugs, or other behaviors. They might isolate away from family, friends, work and other life events. There is no shame in having anxiety. Ultimately, receiving anxiety treatment can help you to live a fuller life.
Treatment for anxiety can help you. People with anxiety often live in a constant state of hyper-arousal. Their thoughts may have turned against them. Above all, Anxiety Treatment can help you find peace again.
Always Worried
At my practice in Ventura California, I find many people are in an endless cycle of worry. Basically, from the moment they wake up, it’s a constant flood of worries. Worry over finances, work, health, family, and more. And lets not forget the lack of sleep from waking up in the middle of the night curtesy of the worry monster!
By and large, so many people struggle with anxiety and worrying. Worrying takes you out of the present moment, away from family and friends, and what matters most to you in life. With tools and support, you can get off the worry train.
How I Help Anxiety
In anxiety treatment I utilize many different approaches. I approach anxiety holistically. Simply put, I like to use different mind and body tools that you might not get from a basic talk therapist. Basic talk therapy only gets you so far when it comes to anxiety relief.
Nervous System Regulation
From my training in Somatic Experiencing, I know that a dysregulated nervous system can play a big roll in anxiety. I teach methods to help you calm your nervous system. Many people with anxiety are often stuck with the sympathetic branch of their nervous system always activated and their brain always on alert for danger. When the sympathetic branch is activated for too long, you can get stuck in a flight/fight/freeze state, which can be tough on the body and mind.
The goal is to activate the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system- rest and digest. When we are able to return to a rest and digest state more often, our thoughts slow down and our bodies regulate. Simply put, it’s important to learn how to feel more centered grounded, and safe. I also include a lot of education on mindfulness and self compassion when I provide anxiety therapy.
Therapies I Use For Anxiety
Our thoughts often trick us when we have anxiety. Above all, thoughts are not facts. Cognitive restructuring therapies I use are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. The basis of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is- Our thoughts affect how we feel. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is based on your life values and making life choices according to your values. It also has tools to unhook from unhelpful thoughts, worry, and rumination.
I also use experiential therapies such as Coherence Therapy, Somatic Therapy, and Internal Family Systems. These therapies help to get to the root cause of the anxiety and fear.
Additionally, I might add in mindfulness techniques such as breath meditations and progressive muscle relaxation. Mindfulness techniques are important because they teach us to remain in the present moment not in the future, where anxiety often lives. Often, with anxiety, we ruminate about the future or are upset about the past.
Other Anxiety Tools
Also, I use EFT- Emotional Freedom Technique. EFT is a great tool for overwhelm and settling yourself. Interestingly, studies have shown that EFT helps lower cortisol in the body which is a stress hormone. You can find more info about EFT HERE.
By and large, symptoms of anxiety don’t have to take over your life.
Healing from anxiety is possible! Anxiety Therapy can help.
It’s Time To Make Changes
Symptoms of anxiety not only affect you negatively, they put stress on relationships, families, careers, and more. I offer you my non-judgmental support, attention and care. Also, from personal experience, I know what it’s like to be overcome with anxiety and worry. Throughout my own life I have dealt with anxiety and it’s unpleasant symptoms. In essence, I may not know exactly what you are experiencing, but I can definitely relate, empathize, and above all, do my best to help.
Questions
My anxiety is terrible. Will I need medication?
Medication is a very personal decision. It might depend on the severity of your anxiety symptoms. Surely, lifestyle changes and anxiety treatment can help, but it can take time for changes to happen. Overall, medication might help you feel stable faster. Then you can start using the tools that I will teach you with clarity. But as I have said, the decision is up to you. I always recommend speaking to a psychiatrist to discuss your options.
Can you help with anxiety attacks?
Anxiety attacks are scary. Additionally, not feeling in control over your body is a terrible feeling. But anxiety attacks can be a thing of the past. During anxiety treatment, we will discover what events or thoughts might be setting off the attacks. Often, we get anxiety over having anxiety attacks! By and large, learning how anxiety attacks work can help to make them go away or lessen dramatically.
Can anxiety contribute to health issues?
Chronic stress and anxiety has been linked to some illnesses and other strange bodily issues. When you’re constantly stressed, your body reacts. After all, the mind and body are connected. Luckily, I work with many people who have somatic (body) symptoms. Calming the anxiety helps to calm the body symptoms. Examples are Irritable Bowl Syndrome, chronic pain, chronic fatigue, TMJ, Vulvodynia, and more. Click HERE to find out more on how I work with these issues.
My Clinical Background With Anxiety
I have worked in intensive outpatient and residential clinics substance abuse and other mental health diagnosis’. Many of my past clients used unhelpful coping behaviors to manage their anxiety symptoms.
I currently enjoy the private practice setting and working one on one with clients in Ventura California or online. With cognitive, experiential, and nervous system techniques, I have seen clients transform their stress and anxiety. Overall, anxiety treatment helped them to feel more confident and comfortable again.
I also have worked with clients who have Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs). Mainly, Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors are- Trichotillomania, Nail Biting, and Skin Picking. The therapy that is used for BFRBs is called ComB.
Lets Talk
To sum up, I am available for in person and online anxiety therapy. My office is located in Ventura, California. It’s close to Oxnard, Ojai, Santa Barbara, and Thousand Oaks. Feel free to call me or send me an email and we can begin working on your peace of mind. Lets start anxiety therapy now!
Feeling Overwhelmed? Whether you are a Highly Sensitive Person or just someone with a lot of Anxiety, coping with feeling overwhelmed can be challenging. The phrase “Too much to do, too little time” probably rings true! Maybe, it’s a hectic family life, a job that’s demanding, or health problems you’re experiencing. Life has its way of being overwhelming! Undoubtably, some people struggle more than others with feeling overwhelmed. 9 tips to help when overwhelming feelings or stressful life events take over. 1. Keep a daily To-Do List. Trying to remember fifty different things that you need to accomplish a day will definitely overwhelm you! It can help to get the small things done first, so your list gets smaller faster. Also, a daily planner can help. Getting organized, and writing everything down will definitely take a load off. My favorite daily planner which also has a To-Do list on each page is by Day Designer. But, there’s also Google Calendar if online organization is your thing. 2. Don’t take on too much at once. Basically, do one thing at a time. Know your limits. Most definitely, learn how to say NO. If you tend to be a people pleaser, do some self-exploration on why you can’t say no. Saying NO is a form of self-respect. Also, creating some self-boundaries can be helpful. Maybe it’s committing to stopping work at 6pm every night. Also, asking for help and delegating tasks can be a huge help. 3. Keep your environment organized. Studies have shown that clutter and mess increase cognitive overload. Clutter has also been linked to high cortisol which is a stress hormone. Overall, clean up your work space, home, car, or even computer desktop (something I am guilty of keeping messy!). Remember, Messy= Stressy! 4. Take breaks when you can. Avoid getting to the place of exhaustion. If you get a lunch break, take it. Too many people feel the need to impress their bosses by working through lunch. But, you’re not impressing anyone if you become sick or burnt out from stress! Green spaces (trees, grass) have been found to lower stress levels. Absolutely, try to get out into nature as much as possible when feeling overwhelmed. 5. Take care of yourself. Get enough sleep each night. If you are lacking on sleep or not getting good sleep, up your sleep hygiene routine (quiet, dark, cool, etc.). When a person who has anxiety doesn’t get enough solid sleep, their anxiety just gets worse. Additionally, eat well. Low blood sugar can also up your anxiety. 6. Be around people who have a regulated nervous system. When you are in a state of overwhelm, it can help a lot to be around someone who is calm. If no one is around, call a calming person on the phone. Humans are social creatures. We are not meant to be alone. 7. Close your eyes! A large part of stimulation comes through the eyes. Whether it’s just taking a few deep breaths or taking 20 minutes to meditate, closing the eyes can help you to calm down. 8. Ground yourself. Often when we are full of anxiety, it feels like we may as well be floating in space. We’ve left our bodies and probably have left earth too! Sensory experiences can help to ground you. One of my favorites is smelling your favorite essential oil. Scent is the fasted way to our limbic system which regulates emotions. Besides that, just orienting to where you are can help ground. What does it feel like to be supported by your chair? Try tapping your feet on the ground a few times. 9. Talk to a therapist. Sometimes dealing with overwhelm takes some extra help. If you are interested in working with me, send me a MESSAGE. I see clients in person in Ventura, California and online all over.
Healing Visualizations We all know what it’s like to close our eyes and visualize ourselves sitting or lying on a warm beach, with white sand, listening to the sounds of a blue green ocean crashing softly. A slight smile might appear on our face, our shoulders might drop down, a calming exhale releases from our lips. Then, we might start to melt into the couch we are sitting or lying on! If we can get really deep into the visualization, it’s almost like actually being on that beach. After that, when we open our eyes, we are a little bit calmer and centered. Utilizing Healing Visualizations are an amazing way that we can turn on our relaxation response, come to a place of calmness, away from the hecticness of daily life. The Science Behind Healing Visualizations But what else can Healing Visualizations do to enhance our lives? What can they do to combat our fears, phobias, and anxieties? A 1995 study led by Harvard Medical School Neuroscientist Alvaro Pascual-Leone looked at two groups of people practicing the piano. Both groups were brand new to learning the piano. One group was able to physically play the piano over 5 days and the other group only mentally rehearsed themselves playing the piano over 5 days, meaning they visualized themselves playing the piano. After, researchers then mapped the brains of all the participants. The piano players that only visualized playing, had nearly the same amount of brain map changes as the people that physically played the piano. Pretty cool stuff! So just by using visualization and other mental rehearsal techniques, real brain changes took place. “When people close their eyes and visualize a simple object, such as the letter A, the primary visual cortex lights up, just as it would if the subjects were actually looking at the letter A.”- The Brain That Changes Itself, Doidge. Using Daily Visualizations Mental rehearsal techniques such as visualization are used by sports players, surgeons, people with phobias and more. The visualizations help them prepare and subsequently succeed at what they are trying to accomplish. But how can Healing Visualizations help you? Firstly, what fears have been holding you back? What would it look like if you overcame your fears? How would your life look? Maybe you just need a boost in preparing for a big event that’s causing some stress. Why not take a few minutes and imagine yourself going through the motions of the thing/event you’ve been putting off but imagine doing it in a confident, at ease manner? See what shifts take place…. Reach Out To sum up, if you are looking for support and guidance on your healing journey, reach out! I see clients for therapy online all over California, and in person in Ventura. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7500130/ https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1993-03757-001 Photo Credit: “White Beach” by Trent Strohm is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Get In Touch
Call
805.669.8176
Location
5550 Telegraph Rd. Ventura, California, 93003
Located near Ojai, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Camarillo, Thousand Oaks.
Also seeing clients for online therapy all over.
