Anxiety therapists in Madison, Alabama AL
Anxiety or Fears
Amy L. Holdbrooks, LLC
Counselor/Therapist, MA, NCC, ALC, BSW
Fear is an emotional reaction to a specific, real danger; while anxiety is an excessive and unfocused fear that may be triggered by various stimuli. Anxiety caused by stress may persist long after the trigger is removed.
8 Warning Signs of Anxiety:
1) Feeling nervous, restless or tense.
2) Having a sense of impending danger, panic or doom.
3) Having an increased heart rate.
4) Breathing rapidly (hyperventilation)
5) Sweating.
6) Trembling.
7) Feeling weak or tired.
8) Trouble concentrating or thinking about anything other than the present worry
6 Years Experience
Anxiety or Fears
Jayson L. Mystkowski
Psychologist, Ph.D., ABPP
While Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (CBT) is highly effective in the treatment of anxiety disorders (e.g., Panic Disorder, Social Phobia, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder), clinicians do see some “return of fear,” or partial relapse, in some patients due to a variety of factors. Over the past two decades, treatment researchers, with whom Dr. Jayson Mystkowski had the pleasure of working with at UCLA for over 10 years, have studied “return of fear” and discovered some key variables that may optimize the effects of learning during CBT for anxiety disorders (Craske et al., 2008).
First, evidence suggests that focusing on tolerating fear versus eliminating fear yields better clinical outcomes in the long term. Namely, teaching clients that fear and anxiety are normal feelings, rather than attempting to “down-regulate” such feelings all the time, is more realistic and seems to engender “hardier” clients. Second, helping clients to generate an expectancy that “scary things will not happen,” is very powerful. To do this, it is important for clinicians to create more complex exposure exercises (i.e., tasks in which a client confronts a stimulus of which they are afraid), using multiple feared stimuli instead of one at a time. Then, the lack of a feared outcome becomes particularly surprising and memorable for a client and fear reduction is more potent. Third, increasing the accessibility and retrievability of non-fear memories learned during treatment are powerful factors in mitigating against a return of fear. Craske and colleagues demonstrated that exposure to variations of a feared stimulus, using a random schedule across multiple contexts or situations, is more effective than exposure to the same stimulus, on a predictable schedule, in an unchanging environment. The former paradigm, it is argued, creates stronger non-fear memories that are easier for a client to access when subsequently confronting feared objects or situations outside of the therapy context, than the later scenario.
In sum, clinicians have long been aware that some fear or anxiety returns following very successful CBT treatment. As mentioned above, there are some clear, empirically supported ways to modify the therapy we provide to further help clients generalize the gains made in therapy sessions to the real world.
20 Years Experience
Anxiety or Fears
Dr. Christina A Remek
Psychologist, Psy.D.
Anxiety is fear that is rooted in the past and the future. Sitting with that anxiety can be debilitating and keep you from your happiness in the present. If you work with me, I can help you start to let go of that fear and cultivate a more present state of being through learning mindfulness skills and relaxation training with biofeedback. Biofeedback lets you see your physical responses to stress in real time so you can learn to gain control over those responses, which will in turn positively affect your mental well-being.
11 Years Experience
Anxiety or Fears
Dr. Courtney Cantrell
Psychologist, Psy.D.
Dr. Cantrell has been effectively treating various anxiety disorders with success implementing a Cognitive Behavioral intervention model.
10 Years Experience
Anxiety or Fears
Dan Walinsky
Psychologist, PhD
When working with anxiety or fears, my goal is to provide some relief for symptoms while also helping you to develop a more in depth understanding of your own anxiety. For many people, this work will involve components of mindfulness work, while also working to shift your relationship with your anxiety.
2 Years Experience