MY SPECIALTIES
Anxiety Therapy
Do You Constantly Worry That You’re Not Good Enough?
Are you struggling to get things done and still make time for yourself and your relationships?
Have you felt reluctant or afraid to set better limits between your work and personal life?
Maybe you find yourself constantly striving to achieve the next goal, but as soon as you achieve it, you feel restless and unsatisfied and move onto the next one. This hamster wheel of anxiety and overworking repeats itself every day, leaving you constantly wanting more and dreading what would happen if you took a break, or—God forbid—a vacation. Perhaps you want to have more fulfilling, connected relationships, but you struggle to be present and in the moment. If this sounds like you, you may be thinking that it’s time to see a therapist who specializes in treating anxiety.
When You’re Dealing With Anxiety, It’s Quite Common To Feel Like You’re Living Behind A Mask
You might suffer from perfectionism and people-pleasing behaviors and put a ton of pressure on yourself not to make mistakes. You may pretend to have energy you don’t have because you don’t want people to know how exhausted you are—you want to be seen as busy, productive, and always achieving.
Over time, however, the need to constantly please others and mask your worries and fears can result in fatigue, burnout, and exhaustion. You might feel like you’re living an inauthentic life, as if you’ve lost touch with who you really are.
If you want to get in touch with your authentic self and break the cycle of anxiety and burnout, therapy with me can help unravel these unhealthy patterns. I have over 30 years of experience helping high-achieving, goal-oriented people manage their anxiety effectively while still working toward achieving their goals and realizing their dreams. You don’t have to keep worrying about whether or not you’re good enough—therapy can help you accept yourself for who you without your masks.
Have any questions? Send me a message!
Chronic Anxiety And People-Pleasing Behaviors Are Often Trauma Responses
If you’ve experienced trauma—which comes in many shapes and forms—you might deal with people-pleasing, perfectionism, and overworking. Like many people, you may have dealt with toxic or abusive relationships where you had to work extremely hard to keep the other person happy. As a result, you may be more likely to feel unsafe in your relationships. Perhaps you hold yourself to very high standards and feel tremendous disappointment when you don’t meet those standards.
You may not realize that these issues are connected to unprocessed trauma. You might be so used to wearing a mask and hiding parts of who you are that for you, the mask has taken the place of your true authentic self. Therapy is a chance to shed the layers of protection and perfectionism you’ve developed, allowing you to get in touch with who you really are instead of who others want you to be.
Our Fast-Paced Culture Makes Anxiety Worse
Everyday life in American culture is demanding. There is intense societal pressure to succeed and balance all our responsibilities effortlessly. Overwork is glorified and having no work-life balance is seen as admirable, bringing us closer to that ever-elusive American Dream.
But living in a constant state of stress and overwork just isn’t sustainable. Eventually, we all reach a point where we simply crash and burn. What’s more, staying in “go, go, and go” mode continually leaves us with little space for self-reflection. It prevents us from accessing our core values and understanding what brings us meaning and fulfillment.
Therapy is a chance to tune out the distractions of our fast-paced world. It gives us a space to slow down and look inward, focusing on what our ultimate values and goals are.
Therapy Can Help You Unlearn The Behaviors Fueling Your Anxiety
It is possible to be successful in life and business without feeling stressed all of the time. It is also possible to release perfectionism and still get work done. You can have it both ways. Most of my clients are high achievers, so I’m used to helping people manage their stress without sacrificing their hopes and dreams.
Healing from anxiety largely consists of unlearning the perfectionistic and people-pleasing behaviors that you’ve grown accustomed to. It means exploring the layers of protection that are shielding you from being your true self and relaxing into true alignment. Together, we will focus on healing the parts of yourself wounded by trauma—or negative life experiences—so you can live a life that’s more aligned with who you really are and what YOU truly desire.
What To Expect In Anxiety Counseling Sessions
In sessions together, you and I will explore and identify the root causes of your anxiety and focus on connecting the dots between past hurt and present stressors. I’ll normalize your symptoms so that you understand that you’re not alone and that your struggles with anxiety are nothing to be ashamed of.
I will also teach you various mindfulness strategies for relieving your anxiety, mapping and regulating your nervous system, and listening to your body. When you are in tune with your body, it becomes much easier to prevent anxiety from overpowering you and follow your own intuition instead of doing what makes other people happy.
I will utilize a wide range of approaches to help you manage your anxiety, some of which are listed below:
● Internal Family Systems (IFS)—Our personalities are made up of many different parts, some of which may have grown too powerful due to unresolved trauma. For instance, if we grew up with a demanding or narcissistic parent, we may struggle with people-pleasing behaviors. IFS seeks to heal the parts of ourselves that are wounded by trauma so that we can live free from the pain of the past.
● Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)—This approach uses a series of gentle stimulation exercises to help you reprocess traumatic memories and lower your stress responses. Instead of just addressing surface symptoms, EMDR gets to the root cause of your anxiety and allows for deeper healing.
● The Flash Technique—Designed as an accompaniment to EMDR, the Flash Technique is essentially a pleasant way to process unpleasant experiences. This way, you can remember painful events without feeling anxious or overwhelmed.
In the end, the benefits of therapy go far beyond what this page can describe. It can help you
uncover the underlying causes of your worries and fears, develop better coping skills, and look
at situations in a less frightening and more empowering way.
You May Have Some Questions About Anxiety Therapy…
What if my problems aren’t bad enough to warrant therapy?
As I often tell my clients, going to therapy is not just something you need to do when you’re at your wit’s end and don’t know what else to do. I invite you to look at therapy as something you engage in to learn more about yourself and proactively address challenges as opposed to a reactive process that you engage in only when you’re feeling badly.
How long will anxiety therapy take?
With consistency and willingness to show up for yourself and engage in the healing process, you can start seeing results quickly. For all new clients, I recommend weekly sessions for at least the first three months of therapy. That said, it’s okay to go at your own pace—you are welcome to pursue therapy short-term or long-term, and I encourage you to do what feels best for you and your mental health.
I had a bad experience with therapy in the past. How will this be different?
It’s not unusual for me to work with clients who have had frustrating experiences with counselors that weren’t able to effectively address their anxiety. Although I don’t have all the answers, I combine a deep sense of empathy and compassion with a wide array of proven, evidence-based approaches. I have lots of experience providing therapy for people struggling with anxiety, burnout, overwork, people-pleasing and other relational and emotional challenges. I’m confident that I can help you develop a counseling plan that allows you to live a more authentic and empowered life.
You Don’t Have To Keep Living In A Cycle Of Anxiety And Overwork
With the right support and interventions, you can reduce your stress, improve your confidence, and overcome the protective tendencies that are stopping you from living out your true potential.
To learn more about my approach to anxiety counseling, I invite you to book a complimentary consultation call (phone or Zoom).
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