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Lune Hadfield
Chartered Counselling Psychologist
Anxiety Disorders
I can help with anxiety from mild to severe levels, and anxiety disorders including social anxiety, phobias, generalised anxiety, panic and health anxiety.
Anxiety is a normal and useful response to many different events or situations in our lives. It prepares us for coping with stress or danger by releasing certain hormones, which generate physical and mental changes that helps us to take on a challenge or react to a dangerous situation. This 'fight-or-flight' mechanism enabled our ancestors to cope with very real threats to their safety, such as an attack by a wild animal. The threats that we face today are generally more subtle, but the hormonal response still helps us to rise to a challenge and perform well.
However, anxiety becomes a problem when it is exaggerated or appears out of context, and if it starts to dominate and limit a person's everyday life it is a signal that something is wrong.
Since each individual experiences an anxiety disorder differently, symptoms vary from person to person. Symptoms also vary depending on the type of anxiety disorder, but some common symptoms include:
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persistent feelings of worry, fear or apprehension
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expecting bad things to happen and imagining the worst
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sleep disruptions or insomnia
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irrational fears
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finding it hard to concentrate, focus or make decisions
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avoiding things that cause anxiety
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having racing thoughts
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physical symptoms such as dizziness, trembling or churning stomach
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seeking reassurance from others
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panic attacks
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fear of losing control, going crazy or insane
Therapy for Anxiety Disorders
There are many different ways to treat and manage anxiety. The right one for you will depend on your type of anxiety disorder, the severity of symptoms, and your preferences. All treatment is tailored to your unique presentation and requirements in order to produce sustainable, positive outcomes.
Therapy for anxiety and the associated disorders aims to help you understand your anxiety and its triggers, challenge negative thought patterns, and develop healthier coping strategies and skills while reducing your anxiety symptoms.
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In essence, anxiety therapy is about empowerment. It is about giving you the techniques and confidence to face your fears, cultivate resilience, manage anxiety, and regain control so you can resume a healthy and fulfilling life.
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So as to support full and lasting change, anxiety therapy also aims to help you address the origins and underlying causes of your anxiety.
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