Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Waterloo, ON.

It is normal to worry and feel stressed about life's problems and pressures. But when compounded symptoms begin to overwhelm us to the point where we are getting headaches, heart palpitations, a churning stomach, cold sweats, sleepless nights, weight loss, obsessive thoughts, a distressed GI tract - then we need help to break the adrenaline-fear cycle. Anxiety feeds on fear and needs to be confronted, appropriately and safely, with relaxation techniques, new perceptions and constructive thinking patterns. A counsellor can help you do this.

Stress and anxiety trigger the internal alarm system, alerting us to a threat, and activating our nervous system, sending a flood of stress hormones through the body in preparation to fight the threat, or run from it. When the brain determines the threat is gone it sends the signal that the body returns to its natural calm state. But what if the brain fails to tell the body that the threat is gone? This is where stress and anxiety start to build and become seemingly impossible to endure. I work with my clients to reduce the presence of stress, to cope and mange it better, while learning how to intentionally activate the body's calming mechanisms.

There are multiple conditions associated with anxiety and stress, such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, Adjustment Disorder or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. These are all complex conditions that require specific and nuanced therapeutic approaches such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Exposure Therapy or Cognitive Processing Therapy. When delivered by a trained, qualified and experience professional, these treatments are considered highly effective.

Anxiety and stress, sometimes they're manageable... sometimes they aren't. If you are having difficulty managing the anxiety and stress, I strive to work with people to navigate and explore their stressors to understand them and gain insight and perspective into those stress patterns so we can collaboratively devise empowering ways to manage them.

The experience of stress and anxiety can be a challenging one to navigate alone. Throughout sessions, we will work to understand activators of stress and anxiety, develop management tools that serve you best, and explore the various meanings and purposes that stress and anxiety serve in your life. Contact me for a free consultation to learn more about my approach and to see if we would be a good fit.

I believe we all have moments in our lives when we experience stress and anxiety. Every single one of us could benefit from tools taken from mindfulness exercises as I do in my personal life. I tend to address these issues from a teaching and practicing approach with clients. Its one thing to suggest and explain something, but there has been greater success when we try it out together in session. I have used role play exercises from time to time when the client feels it would be beneficial to decrease the intensity of their anxiety. I love when my clients confidence starts to build because they have implemented what we have practiced in session and learned that it works!

Embark on a journey of healing and resilience with anxiety and stress counseling. As a therapist specializing in anxiety, trauma, grief, and relationships, I offer a compassionate approach grounded in Emotionally Focused Therapy, Internal Family Systems, Polyvagal Theory, and Somatic EMDR. Together, we'll navigate your challenges, providing support and practical strategies to help you find peace and strength in the face of adversity. Take the first step towards a brighter tomorrow today.

Anxiety and stress are often met with the thoughts that they are out of your control. Through Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. By learning how to identify the thoughts, feelings and body reactions that you experience, you will be able to develop an action plan to reduce these reactions in stressful situations. Recommendations are made to track your moods and emotions outside of therapy and practice strategies when situations occur.

Anxiety can come in many forms, such as: panic and anxiety attacks; extreme fear; worrying thoughts from which one rarely gets a break; sleeplessness either due to going over and over how one behaved during the day, and judging oneself, or, from dreading what the following day might bring; fear and avoidance of one's own intense emotions; fear of rejection of others, leading to intense social anxiety or avoidance of close relationships; performance anxiety, such as worries about exams, job interviews, or performance appraisals at one's place of work. I like to get a sense of the frequency, intensity, and duration of somebody's anxiety, and then to help them to reduce all 3.

As a Somatic (SE) therapist- mental & emotional health follows the state of the nervous system. If it is flowing seamlessly between sympathetic and parasympathetic; arousal and settling, within a “manageable range” there’s a deep, internal sense of well-being, emotional stability, confidence, clear thinking, aliveness, trust in self and others, and mastery. With SE we will focus on: Your experiences... in the body Learn to track, observe, describe what is going on for you Regulate internal arousal states, shift locked patterns into action, increase body awareness. Encourage emotional engagement with attention to: mindfulness, sensations, movements and impulses. Here & Now find YOU!

Stress and anxiety when present within healthy limits can stimulate, motivate, challenge, warn and activate our bodies to react accordingly to the situation. When it's too much, too intense and for too long, stress and anxiety lead to poor functioning, impairment and exhaustion resulting in stress and anxiety overload, contributing heavily to triggering anxiety disorders. In my therapy, I use therapeutic approaches and techniques that help reduce stress and anxiety and enhance the quality of your life and build your emotional resilience. You develop skills to minimize distress and maximize efficacy in many areas of your living and live life in a happier and healthier manner

Anxiety and stress can impact your health, relationships, and sense of fulfillment in life. In therapy, you can learn more about anxiety and stress and how they impact your daily life. With the support of a therapist, you can develop insights, strategies, and resources to help you thrive amid external stressors and challenges. I work with individuals, couples and families. Book a free consultation to explore if we are a good fit for therapy.

I use an integrative non-pathologizing approach that validates the human condition. We all experience worry and stress but I work with clients to accept and understand how they can be curious about what it is that keeps them feeling stuck or stressed. Learning how to regulate our emotions supports our ability to maintain a balanced life. We have the power to switch from our fight/flight/freeze state to our rest/relax/digest state. Mindfully and with compassion, we can find a way through this together. Anxious symptoms often shows up with depressive symptoms and vice versa.