Anxiety and Panic
The elephant sitting on your chest…
It starts with a feeling, a thought, and an intense fear to run, freeze, or hide.
Anxiety threatens your mental and physical well-being. There’s chest pain, rapid heart rate, shortness of breath, dizziness, light-headedness, and feelings of detachment from reality. You experience a constant state of worry, from the second you wake up to when you go to sleep.
The thoughts just won’t stop.
It’s like running a marathon with no finish line. Every moment, you’re wondering, what and why is this happening? You can’t find a logical answer, but the threat is real.
Fear can range from life catastrophe such as going to war to being intensely concerned about the menu for dinner.
Anxiety isn’t all bad… when it’s not out of control.
After all, it protects us from danger. This extraordinary gift keeps us safe, but it can take over our lives when we believe that the world is a scary place and everything in it is a threat.
You are not the only one who has experienced this. You are not alone.
Anxiety and fear are an epidemic in our society. There is a large genetic predisposition, and it is caused by significant trauma and/or other stressful life experiences. It is not a lack of courage or willpower.
When the body faces a mortal threat, a powerful drug is secreted called adrenaline. The body becomes an incredible fighting machine, capable of superhero powers. Every negative or scary thought, statement, belief, or dream is accompanied by this burst of uncontrollable energy. Some alleviate this fear through avoidance, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, rituals, and compulsions, ironically bringing more anxiety.
It becomes a vicious cycle: Your fears make you avoid people, places, and situations… and the world becomes a dark, scary, lonely place.
The fear is paralyzing.
Excessive anxiety can lead to panic attacks. This is where you feel like you’re going to die, lose control, go crazy, or pass out.
Your heart races, and you have sweaty palms, difficulty breathing, or feel sick to your stomach, a reminder of impending doom. You can even feel like you’re not in touch with reality.
Most rush to the ER but are sent back a clean bill of health. And although you might seem “fine” and won’t die from a panic attack, the terror you’re going through on the inside isn’t normal.
The anticipation of having a panic attack then creates one!
The feelings are so frightening that you begin avoiding triggers that may cause another attack to come.
The avoidance and fear then take over your life! The world becomes so scary that you continue to shrink away from it, and your world keeps getting smaller and smaller.
Maybe you’ve thought to yourself, “If I don’t do something about this now, I’m going to get to the point that I can’t even leave my house!”
Sadly, this does happen… but you CAN do something about it.
Anxiety and panic don’t have to control
your life.
Together, we will fight this ugly monster to its death.
I employ various techniques to stop anxiety and panic, so it does not control you, and you’re empowered to control it. By utilizing Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, psychodynamic therapy, and mindfulness techniques, you can learn how to find freedom and live an intentional, free life.
Calming your body…
We can defeat this by teaching you relaxation with deep breathing techniques, learning how to calm your mind and using distraction as a key component. We will practice stress reduction on physical activities that suit you (exercise, yoga, meditation).
Building your confidence…
By focusing on your strengths and building on them, you will overcome limiting beliefs. You will learn positive self-affirmations and celebrate small wins that turn into huge victories.
Identifying your fears…
We will identify the origin of your fears that have led to anxiety. Identifying the source and subsequent triggers will help get you to the root of your anxiety. Alleviate the stressors in your life by identifying and eliminating the worries and fears that keep you up at night.
Challenging those irrational thoughts…
Anxiety is triggered by a negative memory or fantasy that comes out of the blue. While identifying your automatic negative thought and the distortions you have created, we will substitute with a more realistic thought and response. No more all-or-nothing thinking, overgeneralization, faulty conclusions, labeling, personalization, and blame!
Distracting your mind…
The mind doesn’t enjoy doing two things at one time. One train of thought can lead you to the “what if’s” and the other to a simple distraction (lyrics to a song.) The goal is to interrupt the flow of frightening images in the mind and add the physical elements such as exercise or mediation.
Life without fear is waiting for you!
No one trained you to manage your anxiety effectively. Many have been in therapy for years and read countless books, yet still feel they have little to no insight about this condition and do not know what they have to do to find a cure.
Anxiety and fear may hold you back from making the first call, fearing failure and being judged or misunderstood. Together, we will face your fear correctly, and it will truly disappear.
Let’s work through this… not around it!
Freedom from fear is just a call away. Reach out today for your free 15-minute consultation: (626) 283-5852.