Counselling for Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Anxiety is an uncomfortable feeling of fear or imminent disaster, and is a normal emotional response to danger. What makes one person anxious may not create the same response in another.
Our body’s reaction to danger is a very old system and comes originally from a human need to recognise physical danger (i.e. the threat of being eaten by a woolly mammoth), and react quickly (i.e. run away). That’s why when you begin to feel anxious, you feel your heart speed up, your tummy churn, and perhaps tingling in your arms and legs – your body is basically telling you to run away from the danger.
However, modern ‘danger’ is not usually in the form of a woolly mammoth wanting a quick meal. ‘Danger’ today is stress, or feelings of being out of control, or difficult emotions such as depression or anger. If we don’t know how to deal with these issues, we panic, and feel anxious.
Symptoms
Anxiety can affect both our physical and mental well-being, with physical symptoms including palpitations, chest pains, faintness, being flushed, sweating, shortness of breath, hyperventilation, choking, difficulties in breathing, dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headaches, upset tummy, tremors, restlessness, panic attacks and feeling afraid.
Psychological symptoms of anxiety can be a sense of things around you appearing unreal, sounds being distorted, speeding or slowing of thoughts, tension, distractibility, loss of appetite, loss of libido and insomnia. Many clients who struggle with emotional & binge eating will also experience anxiety, as binge eating disrupts serotonin production - your feelgood hormone, and increases your cortisol - your stress hormone.
How We Can Help
We at Sandyford Wellness Centre understand that coping with anxiety can be a lonely and isolating experience. Counselling can help you develop your own coping mechanisms in order to deal with anxiety and strategies to overcome negative thinking patterns. Part of the work in dealing with anxiety is exploring any possible underlying issues causing or maintaining the symptoms.
CBT for anxiety and panic attacks
CBT or Cognitive Behaviour Therapy is a particular method that helps anxiety, panic and other issues. CBT works on the Thoughts - Feelings - Behaviour connections, combining work on both the physiological symptoms you experience in your body, and the mental symptoms you have with thoughts, feelings and negative coping strategies. CBT is a very effective intervention and will significantly reduce, if not eliminate completely, your anxiety, panic or stress symptoms. Learning how to effectively manage stress and anxiety is the key, and being able to consciously relax both your body and your thoughts in the face of stressors is a core skill you will learn.
To enquire about our CBT Anxiety, please use the Contact Form on our Contact Page.
If you struggle with anxiety and/or low mood as a result of emotional or binge eating, our Eating Freely™
Program can help. Please enquire about the program using the Contact Form on our Contact Page.
