ANXIETY
“Anxiety was born in the very same moment as mankind. And since we will never be able to master it, we will have to learn to live with it – just as we have learned to live with storms.”
Sweaty palms, racing pulse, prickles all over your skin, nagging thoughts, the feeling of wanting to get out, the panic when you hear a certain sound, or smell a certain scent. Repeatedly checking the lock on your door, washing your hands over and over so you feel calmer, scratching your skin absentmindedly when you’re feeling stress, or disinfecting your whole house in case germs got in when you were out. Feeling the need to avoid people, even those you love, or feeling like you need to shut the world away and stay home where it’s safe. These are just some of the many symptoms of Anxiety.
Stress is how our bodies and brains react to things that need our attention, like when we’re running late or have a deadline coming up. This biological system is designed to help us with those demands, but sometimes, and for all kinds of different reasons, the system can get kicked into overdrive, particularly when we have trouble feeling a sense of safety in our lives. When that happens, anxiety symptoms can appear anywhere, any time, and often for seemingly no good reason.
You don’t have to be diagnosed (or even identify with a diagnosis) to get some support with your anxiety. With an understanding of what happens chemically in our body and brain during anxiety we can use that information to create a unique plan for your specific symptoms.
There are a variety of tools I can show you for in-the-moment panic to help you gain back some control, and there are skills I can help you develop to reduce the severity of symptoms, the length of time they last, and empower you to feel confident to handle any future anxiety you might have.