Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Vashon, WA.

Anxiety and stress can have a crippling effect on our lives. The panic and the fear can leave us in a state of immobility. If that feels like your experience, I am equipped to help. I address anxiety and stress from a relational model that includes making short-term adjustments for immediate relief while also addressing the origins that cause anxiety and stress. The results are a revived way of being in this world where you get to make decisions that are best for both you and those you come in contact with.

Anxiety and stress take a hold on you and never let go, leaving you trapped and frozen. I help my clients to learn all about the magic of mindfulness practice. It's one of the most effective ways to put you in control of your emotions, rather than them controlling you. Imagine how great it would be to have an internal place of peace and serenity that you can use at any time to relax and become grounded. Mindfulness is an ancient practice that is also supported by scientific empirical studies. It's one of the best ways to change your life.

There are many different types of anxiety and stress. You may be having an adverse reaction to a specific incident or you may be coming to me with a lifelong struggle around generalized anxiety. I work with many clients who have experienced work life stress and trauma and help them make sense of their situations so they can make informed decisions around a course of action. I help many clients uncover lifelong anxiety that has become so normalized that it may not register as anxiety. Ways of coping with anxiety may be also be causing problems. The goal would be to discover better tools to deal with both the underlying issue and the problems that outdated coping skills may be causing.

Anxiety and stress are real problems that keep too many from living healthy, balanced lives. Whether it’s sleepless nights or full-blown panic attacks, we will explore the issues together and determine the best course of action. Current stressors such as relationship difficulties and traumatic events can cause anxiety, however, the cause can also be rooted in the past without your awareness of it. Often the help of a trained therapist can make the difference in finding and healing the source.

Lower anxiety and stress with helpful tools for you individually, in relationships, or at work. Sometimes anxiety rises because of specific circumstances and for others it has always been there. Our culture adds to our anxiety levels and learning how to avoid excess stress can make a huge difference. Anxiety can also be a reaction to something that happened in our past. Let me help you lower your reactions to stress.

It is an uneasy feeling when anxiousness is overflowing, especially when it starts to affect the normal life style of yours or your child’s. I provide professional training and practical relaxation skills to help you feel relief and ease again. The most important thing is that we will together build a beneficial system for you to live with stress in a healthy way instead of being controlled by anxiety.

Traumatic pasts, expectations of a scary future, extreme sensitivity to the world around us, and the shoulds we impose on ourselves that breed shame wield seemingly insurmountable power when we are in the grip of anxiety and stress. I work with you on establishing healthy boundaries, building skills that drop the nervous system out of stress response, and emotional intelligence and regulation. From the safe enough place of being grounded in the Now, we dip into and unravel what maintains the power of your fears and shame. We work to compassionately release all that blocks your authentic self, your sense of purpose and to normalize and encourage the growth of your beautiful and buried truth.

Anxiety and stress are so common they seem like an unavoidable part of the modern lifestyle. However excessive anxiety, stress, and worry can start to destroy your peace of mind, lessen your confidence, and impact your physical health. I provide a therapy process where the pattern of how anxiety is created in your life is understood and new tools to stop the physical and emotional patterns of anxiety are made habitual. The end result is having your peace of mind back so you can focus on the things that matter most to you.

Everyone experiences anxiety at some point, but for some the anxiety is so frequent or intense that it interferes with their lives or even triggers panic attacks. I use Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to help my clients get a sense of control over their own anxiety. We collaborate to learn skills to reduce the frequency or intensity of the anxious feelings, to tolerate the anxiety when it does occur so they can still function through it, and to practice habits that reduce stress and improve general mental health.

In today's fast-moving world it's hard not to be stressed out. It can be even harder to determine if the stress and anxiety is "normal" or should be treated. If it's causing you impairments in your daily life, or if you're stressing about your stress, it's worth talking about in therapy. I help client identify what their stress/anxiety looks like and how to better manage it. Stress doesn't have to be bad, in fact it can be channeled in ways that will make you more a more productive person and help you reach your goals... with the added bonus feeling less stressed and more relaxed.

Anxiety and Stress can be addressed through the use of a two pronged approach - 1) learning how to use practical and accessible tools to manage symptoms, and 2) identifying, understanding and addressing the underlying causes of anxiety and stress. Often there is some type of trauma that has been experienced, but hasn't been integrated so that healing can take place. We will work together to find and heal from the underlying causes of the anxiety, depression and stress.

You do not need to live with anxiety. You know what I mean, the clenching in your stomach or the butterflies, the all too familiar headaches, the tightness in your shoulders or chest, the difficulty sleeping, the constant worrying. These symptoms and others are the result of anxiety. I offer a confidential, safe, and supportive place to talk about what you are experiencing and what you need to live with less fear more joy. There is a way to greater health and well-being. I can teach you relaxation skills, work with your negative thoughts that contribute to anxiety, help you resolve chronic stress that you may be carrying from your childhood, and teach you compassion and self-acceptance.

My approach to counseling couples dealing with stress and anxiety focuses on helping partners better understand how pressure, worry, and emotional overwhelm can affect communication, connection, and daily interactions within the relationship. I work to create a supportive environment where both individuals feel heard and understood while learning healthier ways to respond to stress together rather than against each other. Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques, I help couples identify anxious thought patterns, emotional triggers, and behaviors that may be increasing tension or conflict. Sessions are practical and goal-oriented, often including strategies & exercises to practice.