When you suffer from anxiety, it is easy to feel out of control, alone, even crazy, but anxiety is an extremely common mental health issue. Anxiety can feel very different depending on the person: it may manifest as constant worry, reduced productivity, shortness of breath, and any number of other physical and mental symptoms. It can take the form of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, phobias, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Panic Disorder, and more.
Everyone is familiar with feelings of anxiety, for example, before a date, a presentation, a test, or a performance. It is a natural human response to stress and in small doses it can be helpful. However, when anxiety symptoms are extremely frequent, out of proportion to stressors, or negatively affect your everyday life, it is time to seek counseling.
There is no need to continue letting anxiety run your life, whether it is in big or small ways. I have been treating anxiety for more than two decades. I am also trained in mindfulness-based stress reduction, which research has shown to be beneficial in the treatment of anxiety. I address the problem through both practical, real-time techniques to provide relief, as well as through working on underlying issues to maintain those gains for the long-term. Not everyone experiencing anxiety needs medication, but should we come to feel in our work together that medication might be beneficial, I will work with a psychiatrist to make sure you are getting the best coordinated care.
