Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Bellflower, CA.

Many clients present with increasing levels of stress and anxiety in their lives. Therapy becomes centered around identifying triggers for anxiety symptoms, recent stressors in their lives, and identifying symptoms. Often times, we find together that anxiety has been in their life for a long time and that old patterns of behavior has accompanied it. We explore some of those patterns to identify the triggers and find new coping skills to practice when stress arrives. I find it helpful to collaborate with the client on setting goals and working at a speed that is comfortable to each client. This provides empowerment and confidence in working toward new ways of handling the stresses of living.

Most days, everyone experiences anxiety and stress on some level. The problem arises when the anxiety begins to interfere with normal functioning and you become paralyzed to be more productive. Anxiety can be a specific fear (worries about safety/security) or more generalized where you just constantly feel “anxious” and do not know why. When you are in that state, it is hard to recognize the triggers, or what thoughts/behaviors may be exacerbating your symptoms. Therapy helps to uncover those patterns while also offering techniques to stop them from being debilitating, so you can move forward with a more satisfying, productive everyday life.

Anxiety is an inability to be fully relaxed. It is mental and physical tension. Many things cause it and many things perpetuate it. Not all anxiety is bad or needs to be extinguished. I work with the client to understand the meaning of their anxiety. I find sometimes people are not consciously aware of the real reasons they cannot feel relaxed. Enlisting the client's sense of curiosity about their own thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations I aim to identify their symptoms of anxiety and the origins of them. I utilize cognitive behavioral and mindfulness strategies to identify and replace unhelpful thoughts with more productive ones.