Rockwall Anxiety Therapy

Anxiety goes far beyond a constant fear. The signs and symptoms of anxiety can affect a person's personal and professional life. It can have implications on relationships and overall life satisfaction. Counseling for anxiety is one of the best ways to learn how to recognize the signs of anxiety while also learning ways to cope and overcome them. 

​If you feel like anxiety is controlling your life, therapy may be the solution you need.

What is an Anxiety Disorder?

Living with a constant fear that accompanies you on every interview, work meeting, and social event will eventually wear on you. It can affect your ability to strengthen personal relationships. It can even inhibit your performance at work. In addition, if anxiety affects your ability to sleep, it may even result in physical symptoms.

An anxiety disorder is much more than a fear that follows you through life. It’s a medical condition with treatment options.
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Anxiety therapy, or talk therapy, is one of the most common and effective treatments for anxiety disorders. In addition, trained psychotherapists use a variety of research-backed techniques that help you recognize your anxiety triggers. By exploring the feelings and challenges that come with anxiety, you can better learn how to cope and overcome it.

What Are the Different Types of Anxiety Disorders?

Anxiety can present differently to everyone. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) covers a wide range of anxiety symptoms. For example, those who may experience panic attacks along with anxiety may have a panic disorder. Other anxiety disorders include:

• Social Anxiety: This disorder is marked by an intense fear of social interactions. Sufferers feel acute embarrassment and self-consciousness in social situations.
  
• Agoraphobia: A disorder characterized by avoidance of situations where the sufferer may feel helpless and avoids open spaces or even leaving your home.  
  
• Phobias: An intense fear regarding a specific situation or thing. 
  
• Separation Anxiety: Suffers of this disorder experience fear when away from a particular individual or location. 
  
• Selective Mutism: A form of social anxiety where the sufferer cannot speak in social situations. 
  

Anxiety disorders also commonly co-exist with other mental health or physical conditions. For example, anxiety commonly co-occurs with substance addiction and depression. A comprehensive approach to anxiety therapy should cover all disorders.

Dealing With Anxiety: Individual Counseling and Medication

Anxiety treatment typically includes two options: individual counseling and medication.

While anxiety can be unpleasant, the good news is that anxiety therapy has shown to be significantly effective in treatment. Anxiety therapy involves one-on-one communication with a trained professional. Your therapist will help you recognize anxiety triggers, including how external factors may affect your symptoms. 

In therapy, you’ll learn relaxation techniques to apply when feeling anxious. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most effective talk therapy treatments for anxiety disorder. CBT helps you recognize the differences between rational and irrational fears while also helping you learn to identify how your thoughts affect your feelings. 

Some clients may also benefit from exposure therapy, which involves a slow exposure to your phobia, so you and your therapist can identify symptoms and treatments in real-time.

Medication is sometimes used in the treatment of anxiety disorder. Anxiety medications work best when paired with talk therapy. Medications are a good starting point during treatment as you work through your anxiety. Eventually, if therapy proves successful, you can come off the medications.​

What To Expect From Individual Counseling for Anxiety

It’s essential to go into your first individual counseling session for anxiety with an understanding that it’s a process. While anxiety therapy is effective, it’s not a quick treatment. It takes time to explore where your anxiety comes from and to test out the treatments and techniques that work best for you.

Facing your fears head-on can be overwhelming at first. But, over time, you can expect your fears and anxiety to improve.

Therapy isn’t easy, but it’s worth it. Individual counseling for anxiety gives you the space you need to work through your feelings and fears safely. It allows you to interact with another person in a welcoming, nonjudgmental environment.

Most people will find that they walk away from anxiety therapy with a new understanding and a collection of techniques to cope better. The good thing about anxiety therapy is that you can always return later if you find your current practices less effective.

All About Anxiety Therapy: Goals, Frequency, and Duration

The main goal of anxiety therapy is to help each client learn to recognize their anxiety symptoms and employ various techniques to overcome them.

No two individual counseling sessions are alike for you or any other client. Each session is based on your specific anxiety disorder and symptoms. You and your therapist will discuss your unique goals and wants, and together, you’ll work toward freedom from anxiety. Your symptoms, along with your goals, may even change during treatment.

Ready to take the first step in overcoming your anxiety symptoms? Give Elevate Rockwell a call today to schedule a no-obligation consultation.