Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Riverside, IL.

Anxiety is an intruder! It interferes in an individual's daily life and interpersonal relationships. My approach to anxiety is straightforward: "Either you manage anxiety or it will manage you." The good news is that with knowledge about anxiety and the right tools you can manage this intruder. I teach my clients about the two primary responses to anxiety (one good and the other not good) and give them the strategies and management tools they need to keep this intruder from ruling their thoughts, feelings and behaviors.

Anxiety and stress are a normal part of life, but are problematic when it interferes with your ability to function well. Therapy can provide psycho-education and an understanding of how you experience anxiety and stress in order to best manage it. Physical symptoms, emotional distress, and thought rumination are common aspects of anxiety and stress and we can begin to relieve and treat each of these through therapeutic approaches.

Anxiety and Stress are one of my primary specialties. Anxiety and stress can affect all aspects of your life. My approach to counseling is down to earth, supportive, and informative. I will help you gain insights and teach you new coping skills. My goal is to provide you relief from your suffering. Counseling is a proven way to help manage anxiety and stress. Seeking a new therapist can be stressful and anxiety provoking. I strive to make the process as frustration free as possible. If you have any questions before making an appointment I would be more than happy to answer them.

Anxiety and Stress (and Phobias) are common and can be treated with many tools. We can examine the source of your stress or anxiety, determine how it plays itself out in your day-to-day life, and develop very specific, customized strategies for your unique situation and issues. For example, with Fear of Flying - we can use printed material, homework assignments, educational information/teaching approaches, hypnosis.

If you are experiencing stress and anxiety, I will help you learn strategies to manage the stress while helping you process and work through these experiences. It is my goal to fully understand you and grasp how this impacts your life; I work to integrate each biopsychosocial aspect of your experience when working through anxiety and stress. I will provide you guidance and support while empowering you to overcome these obstacles and helping you growing from them.

I view anxiety as a tender signal—your mind and body’s way of trying to keep you safe in a world that can sometimes feel overwhelming. Rather than pushing it away, we’ll gently turn toward it with curiosity and compassion. In our work together, you’ll find a safe, steady space to slow down, breathe, and untangle what anxiety is truly asking of you. With warmth and care, we’ll work toward calm, clarity, and deeper inner trust.

Anxiety is miserable but it's also one of the easier things to treat in therapy. Whether you are stressed out and worried about "everything" or if your anxiety has a compulsive side to it I can help. I enjoy working with anxious people because there is a lot of energy that can get channeled towards fast improvement. I initially approach anxiety work from a cognitive side as to how the thought processes generate the anxiety. Understanding the emotions underneath the anxiety is an important part of the process as well. I work with generalized anxiety (worriers), OCD, social anxiety, and specific anxieties. Believe it or not - anxiety work can actually be fun and there's often a lot of laughs.

Our best approach on anxiety and stress counseling include teaching mindfulness techniques, cognitive restructuring strategies, and relaxation practices to help individuals identify and manage their anxious thoughts and physical sensations in the present moment. We also address the underlying triggers and beliefs contributing to their anxiety which involves deep breathing exercises, grounding techniques, and exploring cognitive distortions to challenge negative thought patterns.

I work with anxiety and stress using a cognitive behavioral approach. The goal is to help the client learn that they can manage their anxiety and stress. This is done through gaining insight into their perception and thinking around the circumstances causing them stress. We also work to help them reduce the anxiety through physical activity including exercise and relaxation. Combining the thought process with the physical component work well in reducing anxiety and stress.

Today's world brings many stressors into our lives. I would encourage the individual to discuss their stressors, and assist them in learning positive coping strategies. Sometimes it is difficult to make these changes after years of habits, but I would stress the benefits of change. I would encourage the individual not to have such impossible standards for their behavior, which often leads to stress and anxiety. I have found that many individuals who are supportive of their friends often over extend themselves, so I would also encourage healthy boundaries.

Anxiety and stress counseling benefit by sorting through those parts of your life that are unsettling or overwhelming. Anxiety is based on fears, whether conscious or unconscious that counseling discusses in order to understand, problem solve and make peace with. I also teach Breathing lessons to reduce stress from my practice as a yoga teacher.

Chronic anxiety and stress can feel paralyzing, robbing you of peace and joy. I help clients understand the underlying causes of their anxiety and develop effective tools to manage it. Through practical strategies, calming techniques, and mindset shifts, you'll learn how to reduce overwhelm, feel more in control, and experience life with greater calm, balance, and emotional clarity.

I personally have suffered from anxiety and come from a family where anxiety was a pervasive undertow. I know how anxiety can dominate a life and stress the lives of others. Medications may have been tried and and medical services utilized and proven not enough. In counseling I work with my clients individually, sometimes together with a spouse, in a conversational manner to get at the thought patterns contributing to stress and anxiety. Helping the client to get to the base of their anxiety, how they are stressing themselves out in their given life situation and how specifically to change these entrenched patterns is my goal. Referrals are made for other forms of help as necessary,