How does counseling help with anxiety?

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Anxiety left unchecked can be debilitating. Often it manifests as a constant worry about a specific issue, or thinking too much about the past or future. This type of thinking prevents us from focusing on the here and now.

Anxiety can be an all-consuming experience. Some common symptoms of anxiety: physical weakness, feeling like you can’t get a deep breath, or that you will pass out, feeling like you’re going crazy, excessive tearfulness.

A therapist can introduce you to skills focused on negative thinking patterns, mindfulness and distress tolerance. Your therapist can work with you to practice those skills in session to help you figure out how to apply them in the real world.

Maybe there’s something unresolved in your life that is causing the anxiety. Counseling can help you examine struggles you have faced in the past that would explain why you have anxiety now. A licensed therapist can work with you to find out what is bringing out your anxiety.

Sometimes people simply want to find a solution to resolve their symptoms. This can come from a therapist working with you to find good problem-solving techniques to help you when you’re in that fight-or-flight mode. A therapist can help determine whether a medication evaluation would be appropriate. 

People who come into counseling for stress will usually learn relaxation skills to use in their everyday life. These skills might include deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, or becoming aware of negative thinking patterns.