Are My Symptoms Bad Enough For Therapy?

There is a wide misconception that you must be mentally ill to go to therapy, which is false. Most people could benefit from a safe, confidential space that promotes insight, healing, and lasting change. If anything you are dealing with is negatively impacting your daily life, then it is time for therapy. Therapy is an investment, but if you take the time to find the right provider for yourself and you come ready to be open, you will most likely build positive changes quickly.

What Are the Best Treatments For Anxiety?

There are steps you can take today to help yourself feel better. You can evaluate your sleep, movement, and social habits, and start working on getting in touch with your breath and increasing mindfulness. Adding movement, especially some that can release mental energy, can be helpful. Identify stress reduction and relaxation techniques that work for you. The next step is to reach out to a professional. Some highly effective therapy treatments for anxiety include Solution Focused Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Family Therapy.

Do You Treat Specific Kinds of Anxiety?

I work with a wide variety of anxiety disorders. Whether you deal with social anxiety, generalized anxiety, a phobia, or panic, we can work to find solutions that work for you. Anxiety can manifest itself differently for each person, especially depending on the life stage and developmental milestone. I often work with folks dealing with health anxiety, perinatal anxiety, or procedural anxiety.

What Are Symptoms of a Panic Attack?

Panic attacks come on quickly unlike the consistent hum of anxiety. A panic attack can feel like you are having a heart attack. You may feel a change in temperature, dizziness, shaking, nausea, and trouble breathing. You may think you are dying if you are not used to the sensation. Some people feel detached from reality, or you may feel like you are losing control. During a panic attack your system thinks it is under threat. It takes time for your mind and body to calm down after a panic attack.

What Are Symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?

OCD consists of obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions can occur as recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images that are disturbing and unwanted. You may try to ignore, suppress, or neutralize such obsessions by engaging in a compensatory behavior. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts in response to an obsession or rules that you have laid out in your mind. In reality, most compulsions only lead to more distress, and you find yourself in a loop that is extremely hard to break.

What Are Symptoms of a Phobia?

When you experience a phobia, you experience intense fear or anxiety about a specific situation or object. You engage in avoidance towards this situation or object, or if forced to face it, you experience extreme distress. The true threat of this situation or object is disproportionate to other people within your context. This fear or anxiety lasts for more than six months and negatively impacts your daily life.

What Are Symptoms of Social Anxiety?

Social anxiety is marked by fear and distress related to social situations. You may feel exposed, observed, and judged by others. You worry that you will be humiliated, embarrassed, or seen negatively in some way. You avoid most social situations or white-knuckle it through. You go over past situations in your mind and question if you said something stupid.

What Is the Relationship Between Anxiety and Trauma?

There is a strong relationship between anxiety and trauma. It is common that clients experience significant anxiety but do not see themselves as having experienced trauma. It is only when we unpack experiences that people discover an event as traumatic. Having anxiety alone can be traumatic and it is helpful to tackle all mental health challenges from a trauma-informed lens. How our minds and bodies respond to trauma often leads to challenging side effects that can be addressed in therapy.

Anxiety Therapy in Seattle

Find Freedom from Anxiety with An Experienced Seattle Therapist

Chelsea Kramer LMFT #60543643 | Licensed in Washington | 15 years in practice | Perinatal Mental Health Certified, ACBS Member

Black and white photo of person outside on grass, trees behind them, wearing a sleeveless dress. They have a cardboard box on their head. Represents anxiety therapy Seattle. — Image from Pexels by ryanniel masucol

You’re lying awake at 2am. Your mind is spinning about all sorts of things and you can’t quiet it and get to sleep. You’re sick of dealing with racing through, sweaty palms, a pounding heart and dread. During the day you’re replaying conversations with other people, wondering if you said something stupid. You don’t like telling other people you feel this way, it makes you feel silly. What if you mess up at work? What if you’re not the kind of parent or partner you want to be? What if that lump is cancer? These ‘what ifs’ are invading your life. You worry you’ll feel stressed and anxious at the worst possible times. You avoid places and situations you think might trigger these feelings. You don’t know why you feel this way. Life feels overwhelming and you don’t know where to start. You wish someone would just tell you what to do and show you the way.

You may find comfort in exerting as much control over your environment as possible. You don’t like doing thing spontaneously, it stresses you out. Most of the time, you’d prefer to stay at home. Sometimes you can get stuck focusing on a specific thought or activity. It becomes hard to pull yourself away and focus on anything else.

I help people struggling with anxiety, stress, and dread find relief, catch runaway thoughts, and soothe their nervous systems. Using concrete tools and guidance, I help people change their day to day outlook, the way they view themselves, and build a greater sense of embodied personal agency. Don’t put a band aid on the problem, find lasting solutions and change with anxiety therapy in Seattle. Schedule a free consultation today.

Schedule a Consultation

Signs It May Be Time To Start Anxiety Therapy In Seattle

A woman in a turquoise shirt, khaki pants and blond hair with headphones on and working on a laptop. She has her small dog next to her. Represents Anxiety Therapy in Seattle. — Image from Unsplash by Alexander Grey

You’re stressed out all the time.
You dread specific situations or emotions.
You have trouble focusing and making decisions.
You feel irritable or restless.
You may have panic attacks.
You have physical symptoms such as tight muscles, shaking hands, upset stomach.
You have trouble sleeping.
You prefer planning as much as you can and thrive when you feel in control.

Stop getting stuck in your head and get back to living your life. If you have questions or concerns, or are ready to dive in, reach out to learn more about anxiety therapy in Seattle. Click here to schedule your free consultation for anxiety therapy in Seattle today.

Want to learn more about Chelsea? My work focuses on individuals and families dealing with anxiety, grief, and medical trauma, with a special focus on infertility, pregnancy loss, menopause, and health issues.