Anxiety is a very common and natural feeling that all of us experience when we encounter anything stressful or dangerous. It is a combination of physical and psychological responses that affect our mood, thoughts and behaviour. You might feel that you get into a vicious circle of ‘worrying thoughts’ and ‘what if’ scenarios, without being able to find answers and solutions.
In therapy, we identify the triggers that create your anxiety. These can be linked to aspects such as your relationship, employment, family and past issues. The next goal is to find effective new coping strategies to deal with your anxieties so that they become less frightening. Problem-solving skills and relaxation techniques are introduced and applied in the session and also as part of the homework between the sessions.
Articles by our practitioners
Anxiety and Stress
by Ailis Clarke, Psychologist, Psychotherapist and Mediator >
We usually think of anxiety and stress as problematic; the kind of things we want to avoid. But they can play a key role in helping us to succeed as well. When we feel pressure start to mount, it’s like an internal alarm system going off, alerting us to the areas of our lives which need the most attention. If we pause and examine what’s behind our feelings, we can start to identify what we need to do to put things right: whether this means investing more time in a relationship or project, or deciding to walk away.
Anxiety and Stress can be particularly helpful early on in our careers – they push us to work harder, which in turn can expose us to accelerated opportunities and make it more likely we’ll be handling projects with thoroughness and preparedness. However, they can also become maladaptive, especially when overused. At these points, anxiety and stress stop being helpful motivators and start contributing to overwhelm.
When this happens, our rational thinking becomes hijacked by big feelings, which often stem from childhood experiences. What we can find is that how we behaved to stay safe as a child may now be replicated as an adult. When these feelings are acted out in the workplace, they can confuse colleagues who may be surprised by expressions of resentment, outbursts, and accusations, or who witness our complete shutdown.
When anxiety and stress find their way to the surface, it is often very painful. As it is a process that unfolds subconsciously, it is equally unpredictable for both parties, leading to huge feelings of regret both for the person who has become distressed and the person on the receiving end. Fortunately, anxiety and stress systems can be reset, enabling you to use all your skills confidently again.
How anxiety shows up in the workplace
If we look back at childhood experiences, we can trace the route through to adult behaviour.
A criticised child may grow up to become successful in their career but be crippled by imposter syndrome. They may hide a dread of not measuring up or of being shouted at and shamed. This may lead to perfectionist tendencies and workaholism.
An emotionally neglected child might grow up to be a people-pleaser, craving opportunities to be seen and appreciated. This may lead to over-investing in helping others at their own expense or relying too closely on a few co-dependent relationships.
A bullied child may grow up to become a bully themselves, perhaps blaming others for problems that they are experiencing. Sometimes displacement occurs when anger towards someone in one setting is taken elsewhere (for example frustration towards a boss or team-mate spilling out at home). In extreme cases, personality splitting occurs. For adults who behave in this way, only low levels of emotional complexity can be processed, meaning people must be seen as either all good or all bad as understanding that we may have a mix of traits is too much to process when feeling under threat.
All of these defence techniques have roots in the past and we retain them because we believe they help us cope in the moment. We may have been through moments of anger, stress and tension when these responses helped us to navigate things safely – but once we recognise them they have served their purpose, and it’s time to let them go and grow into a brighter and more emotionally-regulated future.
How to break free
Anxiety, stress and fear are interconnected. When we perceive a risk, we recognise a threat and feel fear. We may then become distressed and either lash out or crash out, as described above. Some of us have become so used to this constant state of threat that a sense of calm or happiness can trigger unrest and guilt, putting us back on edge again. Critically, this may lead us to sabotage projects, relationships and career opportunities. It is exhausting to live like this.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) can help us to move beyond our instinctive childhood fear responses. Using CBT can reduce sensitivity to threats, increase tolerance for feeling anxious and help us to identify and manage our reactions.
Together we can unpick how and why you think as you do. For example, catastrophic thinking (“I have an unexpected interview with my boss, so I’m about to lose my job, my house will be repossessed and I will be homeless”) is a common bedfellow of anxiety. Using CBT, catastrophic thinking can be identified earlier to reduce feelings of helplessness – and when you are in a less threatened state, you will be able to consider more realistic interpretations of situations.
Examining the roots of your thinking errors, mapping their triggers, considering the consequences of this thinking and discovering an alternative perspective puts you back in control.
We all develop responses as children which get us through difficult times. Without help or a loving parent modelling how to emotionally grow further, it is easy to remain trapped in behaviours even when your life circumstances have outgrown them. Can we abolish anxiety and stress completely? No, and nor should we want to as they are an important part of our psychological makeup. But what we can do is learn to tolerate them as part of life, and use them to help us read situations realistically and respond healthily.
Anxiety, Stress and Trauma
By Sophia Arthur-Uchendu, Integrative Psychotherapist >
It is also ok to want to be without anxiety, without stress, without the effects of trauma, without the perils of shaken or broken relationships.
It’s ok to want to be free and I can help you find that freedom. If you fall physically sick, you’d want to be well. If you lose something, you’d want to find it. You’d want to recover all the time. So it is ok to want it. While we will validate and acknowledge the feelings of despair, I can journey with you to come out of it and be free. I work with diverse professionals from various walks of life. I have found that many of them (in truth, I should say, ‘us’) tend to hide suffering or pain or struggles so it does not taint who they are professional. They want to always look and even feel ‘put together’ and this of course is within their rights but we all know it is not always like that. The support and safety to make it like that – free from suffering, pain or struggles happen in the therapy room. The therapy space is for you and with me, you are assured of the highest form of unconditional positive regard. No trauma can be solved without the right kind of feeling of connectedness, a connectedness that breeds on safety, a connectedness that shows “hey, don’t worry, you are a person, you are human, you are normal…” a connectedness that attracts not repels. Allow me to journey with you to your place of recovery
Anxiety
By Tahirah Yasin, Psychodynamic Psychotherapist >
“Anxiety and Panic disable our most simple tasks.”
Anxiety and Panic manifest when we hit a point
of complete and utter overwhelm.
Our sympathetic system of “Fight” or “Flight” kicks in
leaving us vulnerable and exhausted.
Overwhelming can be sparked by various triggers
Emotional – Chemical – Psychological – Spiritual
or a varied combination of them all.
I can help you:
- Identify what your triggers are
- Create safety to disable the anxiety and panic
- Enable your return to an effective parasympathetic state of mind.
How Rapid Transformational Therapy can help with stress, anxiety & depression
By Sara Faramarzi, RTT therapist
Working with your subconscious mind, RTT allows you to dig deeper into the exact reasons behind why you’re suffering from stress, anxiety or depression.
On the surface, we can assume a handful of day-to-day situations, past events, and memories that may cause a person to suffer from stress, anxiety, depression or all three. However, the reasons behind any of these issues could be far from what you think. As humans, the majority of what we think and assume comes from our conscious mind which only has 10% influence in our lives- to get to the root cause of any issue, we must use our subconscious mind which holds 90% control over us but lies dormant for the majority of the time. Through an induced state of relaxing hypnosis, Rapid Transformational Therapy awakens your subconscious mind and allows you to learn the exact reason behind why you are suffering. It takes you to the root cause of your issues- not just to what you assume could be causing them. Once you have a full understanding of why/how/when you allowed these issues into your life- RTT rewires your mind in a positive healing way, eliminating old negative beliefs and memories which caused your issues. This powerful therapy then addresses any triggers that make you feel the negative symptoms, ultimately making you immune to them and achieving complete freedom from stress, anxiety and depression.
How Tension & Trauma Release Exercises (TRE®) help with chronic stress and trauma recovery.
By Kate Munden, TRE and EFT therapist >
Chronic stress and trauma can take a toll on all aspects of your life, including your physical and mental health. Fortunately, there are cutting edge embodiment techniques that you can learn to can help alleviate the effects of these debilitating conditions. One such technique is Tension & Trauma Release Exercises (TRE®).
WHAT ARE TENSION & TRAUMA RELEASE EXERCISES (TRE®) AND WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?
By Kate Munden, TRE therapist >
TRE is a body-based, self-help technique created in 1998 by Dr. David Berceli, an internationally acclaimed trauma expert. TRE helps the body release deep tension, stress, and old patterns of unexpressed trauma responses that are held in the nervous system. The idea underpinning the process is that our fascia and muscles often hold the embodiment of old tension, stress, and trauma. Therefore, appropriate manipulation of these muscles will lead to the release of chronic holding and muscle strain; by releasing this strain, the whole body can return to a state of equilibrium or balance.
WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM TRE®?
TRE is a safe and effective tension-releasing tool for everyone, including children. It is a simple and easy-to-use technique that once learned correctly can be practiced in the comfort of your home. If you are struggling with chronic stress or chronic illness, TRE can be a helpful addition to your recovery toolbox.
SOME BENEFITS POSSIBLE WITH REGULAR TRE® INCLUDE;
- Deep tension relief
- Chronic Stress reduction & management
- Pain reduction
- Improved mood
- Physical and psychological trauma recovery
- Improved sleep quality
- Feeling more self-reliant and motivated
- More sexual enjoyment
- Reduction in PTS symptoms
SCIENTIFIC BACKING FOR TRE®.
Several scientific studies* confirm TRE® is effective in relieving deep muscle tension, trauma, and stress. A recent study in 2021 to test the effectiveness of TRE in multiple sclerosis revealed that these exercises can help alleviate the symptoms of this muscle-related condition.
Also, a recent case study revealed that a former soldier practised TRE exercises consistently for four months, before bed and right after waking up, and testified of massive improvement in his post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms.
Further studies found that TRE was effective in reducing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in former soldiers.
Another study found that TRE helped reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.
HOW DO WE PRACTICE TRE®?
The process consists of learning 7 simple exercises which clients can practice in any comfortable environment. The exercises are taught in a specific sequence and they involve a series of gentle movements and stretches to build a little tension in the muscles. These unique movements invite the body to access an innate reflex mechanism that triggers the vibration or tremor of the muscles and fascia.
This is similar to how a dog will tremor when frightened or excited. Our nervous systems work in the same way to discharge stress. TRE gives us a doorway to access this natural self-healing tool.
This then creates deep relaxation and calms the nervous system. Often the sense of calm experienced is very different and profound for many.
TRE® encourages the body to return to a state of balance by activating our shaking mechanism in a safe and regulated environment.
Although TRE® is a simple self-help tool, it can be very powerful and experts recommend being supported by a Certified TRE® Provider in the early stages.
After booking an appointment, clients are taught the various safe and effective ways to practice TRE® exercises to achieve maximum benefits.
