Counselling for Anxiety & Panic

Anxiety is often caused by excessive stress and worry about some unpleasant or negative thing that could happen in the future. It is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear, and it can be mild or severe. Everyone gets nervous or panicky when something bad happens or when facing an uncomfortable situation.  These feelings are completely normal responses to stress (e.g. like attending an interview, starting a new job, or taking a driving test or exam).

The symptoms we experience when we feel anxiety or panic are the body’s fight or flight response kicking in.  A survival mechanism once used to make sure you respond appropriately to threat of some sort.

Usually once the stress has passed, the feelings pass too, but sometimes your responses can be disproportionate to the situation, or simply don’t go away, or are triggered for no obvious reason.  This type of anxiety is described as generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), which is constant, excessive and exaggerated worry about everyday life such as money, health, work and family. When your daily life becomes constantly full of worry, fear and dread this can leave you feeling that your life is joyless.  You become irritable, tired through lack of sleep, not being able to relax or switch off.

Anxiety can cause changes in your behavior and the way you think and feel about things.  It can affect you physically and psychologically. These symptoms may cause you to withdraw from social contact e.g. seeing your family or friends, to avoid feelings of worry and dread. You may also find it difficult and stressful going to work and may take time off sick.  These actions can make you worry even more about yourself and increase your lack of self-esteem and confidence.

If left untreated, anxiety may become so extreme that it restricts you living your life in the way you’d like to. Ongoing stress and anxiety can have negative impact on our mental, emotional and physical wellbeing.

Anxiety can range from a fairly mild problem to full blown panic attacks.  It has a wide range of symptoms that can impact on your social life, work and personal relationships. Symptoms of anxiety vary from person to person, but most often include some of the following:

Physical symptoms may include:

• Heart Palpitations
• Muscle weakness,  aches and tension
• Dizziness
• Fatigue
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Drowsiness and tiredness
• Dry mouth
• Excessive sweating
• Stomach aches
• Nausea
• Pins and needles
• Tension Headaches
• Difficulty falling or staying asleep (insomnia)

Psychological symptoms may include:

• A sense of dread
• Feeling constantly ‘on edge’
• Difficulty concentrating
• Impatience
• Being easily distracted
• Irritability
• Restlessness

Anxiety can take many forms

People can be anxious about upcoming events, anxious about their performance, anxious about something they are about to do, or anxious about a particular situation or event.  Having worked with a great number of clients, here are some of the most typical areas that anxiety plays a part:

• Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
• Social Anxiety
• Panic Disorder
• Phobia
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)