Will an anxiety therapist help me?

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Will an anxiety therapist help me?

Will an anxiety therapist help me?

If you’ve experienced symptoms of anxiety, or have been diagnosed with anxiety, then you may be wondering whether an anxiety therapist is right for you.

Before providing information to help you answer this question, it is important to first note that it is normal to feel anxious or experience anxiety at different points in your life. Many people report experiencing the symptoms of anxiety before public speaking, when participating in a new activity, or while waiting on results from a doctor. But, for those who have an anxiety disorder that needs anxiety treatment, these symptoms of anxiety do not subside once a temporary stressor is removed. Those who will benefit greatly from an anxiety therapist often feel fear, worry, or restlessness to an extent that it disrupts their daily life and activities.

So, how do you know whether an anxiety therapist will help you? Since there are many different types of anxiety, such as phobia, general anxiety, social anxiety, and panic attacks, you may wish to speak with a doctor if you experience any of the following symptoms on a regular basis or if any of the following symptoms impact your ability to complete regular tasks:

  • If you worry excessively and/or regularly
  • If you have little luck at controlling or alleviating your anxious feelings and thoughts
  • If you often feel nervous, unsettled, or uneasy
  • If you often feel restless, on edge, or wound up
  • If you have difficulty getting comfortable or difficulty sitting still
  • If you notice a pounding or racing heart
  • If you notice shortness of breath
  • If you are often fatigued
  • If you lack the energy to handle daily activities
  • If you experience difficulty with memory or concentration
  • If you feel drowsy or weak
  • If you have difficulty keeping up with daily activities
  • If you have tight muscles
  • If you have trouble falling or staying asleep
  • If you often feel irritable, jumpy, or tense

If you experience one or more of these symptoms regularly, or if one or more of these symptoms are impacting your ability to handle daily activities, then it might be the right time to contact your doctor and find an anxiety therapist.

Anxiety therapy is often a natural and effective treatment for anxiety, and a well-researched, and well-respected form of anxiety treatment. At times, medication will be recommended in coordinations with therapy.

If anxiety therapy is the right course of treatment for you, then your therapist will start your treatment by first understanding and identifying your symptoms. He or she will want to look for the common triggers or factors that contribute to your anxiety. Different symptoms and clinical presentations will result in different forms of therapy.

Your therapist would then work with you to provide a proper course of treatment. Often, this treatment includes teaching effective ways to manage your anxiety symptoms, so that your symptoms can have less of an impact in your daily life.

Just like there are different forms of anxiety, there are different forms of therapy. The most common form of anxiety therapy is cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a type of anxiety treatment that is effective at identifying and managing the factors that contribute to your anxiety. This type of treatment is often a collaborative effort, so that both a client and professional therapist would work together to identify triggers and effective coping techniques. Often, those coping techniques include understanding how one’s thoughts contribute to anxiety, so that a therapist can help a patient change his or her thought patterns and reduce the likelihood of symptoms.

As opposed to the other forms of treatment that might be recommended, cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown to benefit all types of anxiety.

Other types of therapy and counseling include:

  • Group Therapy
  • Family Therapy
  • Psychodynamic Therapy
  • Holistic Therapy
  • Dialectical Behavioral Therapy

These are just a few therapy options you may consider with the recommendation of your therapist. It is important to mention that not all of these therapies are right for every type of anxiety. Therapy should always be provided under the supervision of a professional. When used correctly, many patients see a decrease in anxiety symptoms after several months of therapy. Some see results in only a few sessions. Make sure to contact your therapist if you think an anxiety therapist could help you.

References

  1. Anxiety Disorders. (March 2016). In National Institute of Mental Health. Retrieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders/index.shtml.
  2. Anxiety Disorders. In National Alliance on Mental Illness. Retrieved from https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-Conditions/Anxiety-Disorders.
  3. Anxiety Fatigue and How it Affects Modern Living. In Calm Clinic. Retrieved from http://www.calmclinic.com/anxiety-symptoms/fatigue.
  4. Beyond Worry. In American Psychological Association. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/anxiety.aspx.