ANXIETY COUNSELING

As much as we all want to enjoy a worry-free life, everyone feels anxious sometimes. Anxiety is a natural reaction to stressful experiences that we face every day. However, if feelings of anxiety begin to dominate your life, you may need to take steps to reduce your worry and restore your peace of mind.

Chronic anxiety can take a variety of different forms. Some people experience a generalized state of anxiety, typically characterized by excessive worrying, moodiness, negative thinking or malaise. Others may be plagued by panic attacks, which can cause temporary feelings of terror, breathing problems, an accelerated heart rate and trembling. Anxiety problems also can result in the kind of repetitive actions and impulses that are common in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Phobias, or extreme and unrealistic feelings of fear, also may be signs of anxiety issues.

Symptoms of chronic anxiety:

• Intrusive thoughts or worries that you are unable to control
• Worrying constantly
• Restlessness, agitation or irritability
• Repetitive behaviors performed to subdue your anxiety
• Experiencing recurring panic attacks
• Insomnia. Never feeling rested after sleep
• Suffering from phobias or extreme fears
• Inability to relax
• Health issues such as stomach problems or muscle tension in your shoulders, neck or back
• Procrastination. Fear of decision-making
• Feelings of depression
• Inability to concentrate
• Feelings of isolation. Feeling misunderstood
• Relationship problems

Through anxiety treatment, you can discover ways to lessen unwelcome feelings of worry. With the help of a counselor, you can correct the thinking patterns that aggravate your anxiety and you can learn how to separate realistic fears from unrealistic ones. Relaxation therapy can help you to focus on pleasant feelings so you are able to remain calmer in stressful situations. Therapy also can gradually expose you to the things you fear most, allowing you to become desensitized to them. In some cases, medication also may be used to treat anxiety issues.

Benefits of anxiety counseling:

• Develop new thinking patterns to reduce worry
• Overcome phobias and fears
• Improve relationships
• Learn new ways to relax
• Eliminate health problems associated with anxiety

Anxiety in a mild form can be an annoyance, but severe anxiety can be incapacitating. Constant worry can keep you up at night and prevent you from accomplishing the tasks you should be doing in the day. Physical problems stemming from anxiety can leave you feeling tense and drained. With guidance from licensed counselor Jamie Leonard, you can learn to face life with a fresh and optimistic outlook.