Anxiety

Our bodies have developed sophisticated systems to respond effectively to threats; your sympathetic nervous system automatically activates and prepares you to fight, flight, or freeze in a matter of seconds. This system is super helpful when it comes to the threats of our ancestors, like a predatory animal. But you probably feel less appreciative of your sympathetic nervous system when you find yourself shaking, sweating, and stammering during a big exam or first date. For some of us, the nervous system can be quite sensitive, responding in ways that seem excessive or altogether inappropriate at times (like a panic attack at a crowded grocery store or feeling nauseous before a work presentation). 

This sort of anxiety can cause such distress that it impacts our daily functioning, leads us to avoid activities that we love, or keeps us from being fully present in our lives. Whether your anxiety is generalized, social, work/school related, or takes some other form, it is (in its own pesky way) actually trying to keep you safe. For instance, anxiety may function to protect us from feeling shame, embarrassment, or vulnerability. In therapy, I work with clients to turn toward their anxiety with compassion and curiosity in order to better understand the anxiety response and relate to anxiety-triggers in a new way. Orienting differently to our anxious feelings and sensations allows us to live full lives and, ultimately, reduces the anxiety itself.

If you are interested in medication as a complement to therapeutic work, I will happily connect you with a trusted prescriber.