Therapy for Anxiety in Duncan, BC and Online
Anxiety is a physiological experience rooted in the nervous system. It’s the body’s threat-detection system working overtime. For some, anxiety is genetic. For others, anxiety developed as a way to survive stress, uncertainty, trauma, or overwhelm. For many, it’s a combination of the two.
In therapy, we move away from blaming or battling anxiety, and instead work toward understanding it, softening its grip, and helping your nervous system feel safer.
Types of Anxiety
Anxiety can show up in many different ways, and it's common to experience more than one type at the same time. Regardless of how anxiety presents, it is treatable, and therapy can help you better understand what's happening and develop new ways of responding.
Generalized Anxiety (Chronic Worry)
Generalized anxiety often feels like a mind that never fully turns off. You may find yourself constantly thinking ahead, preparing for worst-case scenarios, or feeling responsible for preventing things from going wrong. Many people experience physical symptoms as well, such as muscle tension, restlessness, fatigue, irritability, difficulty concentrating, or trouble sleeping. Living with chronic worry can be exhausting and can make it difficult to fully relax or enjoy the present moment.
Panic Attacks and Panic Disorder
Panic attacks can feel sudden and overwhelming. Symptoms may include a racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, chest tightness, nausea, shaking, or a feeling that something terrible is about to happen. Many people fear they are losing control, having a medical emergency, or even dying. Although panic attacks are not dangerous, they can feel extremely frightening. Over time, some people begin avoiding situations where they worry a panic attack might occur, causing their world to become increasingly restricted.
Social Anxiety
Social anxiety involves a persistent fear of being judged, rejected, criticized, or embarrassed by others. You may spend a lot of time worrying about what people think of you, carefully monitoring what you say or do, or replaying conversations long after they've ended. Social anxiety can make it difficult to speak up, set boundaries, attend social events, or feel comfortable being fully yourself around others.
Health Anxiety
Health anxiety involves persistent worry about your health, bodily sensations, or the possibility of illness. You may find yourself frequently checking symptoms, seeking reassurance, researching medical conditions, or feeling alarmed by normal bodily sensations. Even when medical reassurance is provided, the anxiety often returns. This can be incredibly distressing and can leave you feeling disconnected from a sense of safety within your own body.
Trauma-Related Anxiety
For some people, anxiety develops in response to difficult life experiences, chronic stress, or trauma. In these cases, the nervous system may remain stuck in a state of protection long after the original danger has passed. You may feel constantly on alert, easily startled, unable to relax, or as though you're always waiting for something bad to happen. Rather than being a sign that something is wrong with you, these responses often reflect a nervous system that has adapted to help you survive challenging circumstances.
Perinatal and Postpartum Anxiety
Anxiety during pregnancy and the postpartum period is extremely common, yet many parents are surprised by how intense it can feel. You may find yourself constantly worrying about your baby's health and safety, feeling unable to relax, checking repeatedly, imagining worst-case scenarios, or feeling overwhelmed by a sense of responsibility. Some parents experience intrusive thoughts that are upsetting, unwanted, and difficult to talk about, often fearing that having these thoughts means something is wrong with them.
Perinatal and postpartum anxiety can also show up physically through difficulty sleeping, racing thoughts, irritability, restlessness, feeling constantly "on," or struggling to trust yourself and your decisions as a parent. These experiences can be frightening and isolating, but they are far more common than many people realize. With support, it is possible to better understand what is happening, reduce anxiety's hold on your daily life, and feel more confident and connected during the transition to parenthood.
How anxiety might show up
Racing or looping thoughts
Chronic tension, tightness in the chest, jaw, or stomach
Heart racing, stomach issues, dizziness
Restlessness or inability to relax
Fatigue from being “on” all the time
Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
Irritability or emotional overwhelm
What does therapy for anxiety look like?
Because anxiety affects both the mind and body, therapy is often most effective when we address both.
My approach is gentle, collaborative, and trauma-informed. Depending on your needs, our work may include:
Learning practical tools to help calm your nervous system, manage overwhelm, and respond differently to anxiety when it shows up.
Understanding the patterns that keep anxiety going, including worry, overthinking, self-criticism, perfectionism, people-pleasing, avoidance, or feeling constantly "on alert."
Exploring whether past experiences, chronic stress, relationship dynamics, or unresolved trauma may be contributing to your anxiety in the present.
Identifying and working with different parts of yourself, such as the part that worries, plans for every possible outcome, seeks reassurance, or feels responsible for keeping everyone safe. Rather than trying to get rid of these parts, we'll work to better understand them and reduce the burden they carry.
Paying attention to how anxiety shows up in your body, such as tension, restlessness, racing thoughts, digestive symptoms, difficulty sleeping, or feeling unable to relax. Together, we'll explore ways to help your body feel safer and more settled.
Learning about the biology of anxiety so you can better understand what's happening in your brain and body, reducing fear of anxiety itself and building greater self-trust.
Developing practical strategies to challenge unhelpful thinking patterns, face fears gradually and safely, and reduce avoidance so anxiety has less control over your life.
Creating realistic coping strategies, boundaries, and pacing practices that support daily functioning without pushing yourself beyond your limits.
When appropriate, collaborating with your physician or other healthcare providers to explore whether medication, medical investigations, or additional assessments may be helpful.
“Perhaps the biggest tragedy of our lives is that freedom is possible, yet we can pass our years trapped in the same old patterns . . . We may want to love other people without holding back, to feel authentic, to breathe in the beauty around us, to dance and sing. Yet each day we listen to inner voices that keep our life small.”
— Tara Brach
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