Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Topanga, CA.

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.

Stress at work or school, relationship stress, financial stress, health issues often are precursors for people to seek psychotherapy. Disturbances in sleep and appetite and an inability to attend and concentrate can undermine one's work performance or a student's ability to successfully master the demands of school. I have experience treating teachers, nurses, doctors and lawyers with anxiety and stress and, as well, see college and graduate and law school students form universities in the Los Angeles area, including USC, UCLA and Loyola.

Much like depression, anxiety and stress is something we all deal with at some point in our lives. Anxiety, in and of itself, is not a bad thing. In fact, some anxiety is not only healthy, but necessary for us to get things done. Without some anxiety, we lack motivation to take action. However, anxiety can become problematic when it overwhelms and paralyzes us. Therapy helps by giving us a space to learn skills to better manage the anxiety and no longer feel gripped by it. I use a holistic/mindful approach consisting of connecting the mind, body, and the environment (incorporating all 5 senses) to live fully in the present moment with respect and compassion for ourselves.

I believe anxiety can be stalled by shame, miscommunication, and hidden thoughts. I will work with you to identify how this happens through your relationships-- and this can be any type of relationship; coworker, friend, boss, sibling, partner, child, and/or spouse. What often helps in this area is to practice mindfulness and a cognitive intervention and other techniques to create self awareness and foster relationships.

I begin by understanding how you experience anxiety/stress because how you experience them is unique for you. Then we begin to increase your tolerance for how you experience anxious/stressful thoughts, feelings, memories, and/or situations. This is necessary so the anxiety/stress stops being an overwhelming experience that interferes and gets in the way of your life. It's crucial to be able to become more comfortable when you experience anxiety/stress because they're a part life. The problem is the distressing and limiting to debilitating effect they have on you. As you learn to be able to do this, you will begin to experience more peacefulness, calm, hope, self-confidence and self-esteem.