When Is It Time to Seek Therapy for Anxiety?

You don’t have to wait until anxiety feels unbearable before talking with a therapist.

Anxiety is a normal part of life from time to time. You may feel nervous before an important meeting, worry about a loved one, or feel stressed when life gets busy. But when anxiety starts happening often, feels difficult to control, or begins affecting the way you live your life, therapy may be helpful.

It may be time to speak with an anxiety therapist if you:

• Spend a lot of time worrying or expecting something to go wrong
• Have trouble relaxing or quieting your thoughts
• Avoid people, places, activities, or situations because they make you anxious
• Experience panic attacks or sudden feelings of intense fear
• Have difficulty sleeping because your mind won’t slow down
• Frequently feel tense, restless, irritable, or overwhelmed
• Notice physical symptoms such as a racing heart, upset stomach, headaches, or muscle tension
• Find that anxiety is affecting your relationships, work, school, or everyday responsibilities

You can also seek anxiety counseling simply because you’re tired of feeling this way. You don’t need an anxiety disorder diagnosis, and your symptoms don’t have to fit neatly into a particular category.

Common Types of Anxiety

Anxiety can look and feel different from one person to another. Some people experience constant worry, while others notice anxiety only in certain situations.

Common types of anxiety include:

• Generalized anxiety: Ongoing worry about everyday things such as work, relationships, health, finances, or responsibilities.
• Social anxiety: Fear of being judged, embarrassed, rejected, or uncomfortable around other people.
• Panic disorder: Repeated panic attacks or sudden episodes of intense fear that may include a racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, or feeling out of control.
• Phobias: Strong fear connected to a specific object, place, situation, or experience.
• Health anxiety: Persistent worry about your health or fear that physical sensations may mean something is seriously wrong.

You may also experience anxiety without knowing exactly what type it is. You don’t need to identify or diagnose it yourself before reaching out. An anxiety therapist can help you make sense of what you’re experiencing and talk through what kind of support may be helpful.

A therapist can help you understand where your anxiety may be coming from, recognize patterns that keep it going, and learn practical ways to respond to anxious thoughts and feelings.

Reaching out earlier can also be helpful. If you’ve started noticing that worry, fear, or stress is taking up more of your time or keeping you from doing things you want to do, that is enough reason to have a conversation with a counselor.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact us today.