Anxiety Management

While medication can be valuable for symptom management, our therapeutic approaches address the underlying causes and thought patterns while teaching lifelong coping skills. Many clients find therapy provides sustainable relief, either alongside medication or as an alternative. Research shows that combining therapy with medication often yields the best outcomes—therapy teaches you skills that last forever, while medication provides relief to engage more fully in treatment.

Yes, we offer evidence-based exposure therapy for specific phobias such as fear of flying, needles, heights, enclosed spaces, animals, or other triggers. This gradual, supported approach has high success rates (80-90%) for phobia reduction. We create a personalized fear hierarchy and progress at your pace, ensuring you feel safe and in control throughout the process.

Many clients report some symptom relief within the first few sessions as they begin implementing basic regulation techniques like breathing exercises and thought challenging. More significant and lasting changes typically emerge within 8-12 weeks of consistent practice. However, everyone's timeline is different based on anxiety severity, consistency with therapy homework, and life circumstances.

Occasional anxiety is a normal part of life, but the tools you learn in therapy become lifelong skills. When anxiety resurfaces during stressful periods (job changes, relationship transitions, health challenges), you'll know exactly how to manage it using your CBT toolkit. Many clients schedule occasional "booster" sessions during high-stress periods. We also provide resources for ongoing practice to maintain your progress.

Everyone worries sometimes—that's normal. Worry becomes an anxiety disorder when it's excessive, difficult to control, interferes with daily functioning (work, relationships, sleep), causes significant distress, and occurs most days for at least 6 months. If worry is taking over your life, making decisions difficult, or causing physical symptoms that disrupt your day, it may be time to seek support.

Absolutely. Panic attacks are highly treatable with CBT and exposure therapy. We teach you that panic attacks, while terrifying, are not dangerous—your body is having a false alarm. You'll learn interoceptive exposure (safely inducing panic sensations in session), breathing techniques, cognitive restructuring to reduce fear of panic, and how to break the "fear of fear" cycle. Most people see significant reduction in panic frequency and intensity within 8-12 weeks.

Not necessarily. While some anxiety is rooted in past trauma, anxiety treatment focuses primarily on present-moment symptoms, thought patterns, and behaviors. You're never forced to discuss anything you're not ready to address. If past trauma is relevant to your current anxiety, we can incorporate trauma-focused approaches at a pace that feels safe for you.

Many people with anxiety feel nervous about therapy itself! We get it. Your first session is low-pressure—we'll explain how therapy works, answer questions, and teach you one or two immediate coping techniques you can use right away. You control the pace. Telehealth sessions can feel less intimidating than in-person if social anxiety is a concern. And our free 15-minute consultation lets you "test the waters" before committing.

Yes, health anxiety (hypochondria) and medical phobias are specialties of ours. We help you distinguish between realistic health concerns and anxiety-driven catastrophizing, reduce compulsive checking behaviors and excessive doctor visits, tolerate medical uncertainty, and gradually face feared medical procedures through exposure therapy. Many clients with needle phobias, fear of medical tests, or health anxiety see significant improvement.

No, medication is not required. Many people manage anxiety successfully with therapy alone, especially for mild to moderate symptoms. For severe anxiety, panic disorder, or if therapy alone isn't providing sufficient relief, we may recommend discussing medication with your doctor. All medication decisions are collaborative and based on your preferences, symptom severity, and treatment response. If you do take medication, we coordinate with your prescriber to ensure comprehensive care.