Anxiety therapists in Ephrata, Washington WA
Anxiety or Fears
Kathryn Ziemer
Psychologist, PhD
All of us have times when worries pile up, we face situations that seem impossible, and life feels out of control. There are proven ways of coping with fears and anxiety and you don’t have to deal with it alone. Together, we will explore your fears and understand the stressors in your life. We will use evidence-based techniques to help you quiet the anxious thoughts and cope with the fears. By confronting your anxiety in a supportive environment, you can tap into your strengths and overcome the challenges in your life.
16 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
Debra Nelson
Psychologist, Psy.D.
We all experience worries and anxiety at some point in our lives. Sometimes our ways of coping with these feelings don't seem like enough. Whether you are dealing with nagging worries, or something more significant such as specific fears (e.g., driving, flying), obsessive-compulsive tendencies (e.g., hording, having trouble with germs, varying your routine), or are having panic attack symptoms, we can work towards reducing the impact these worries are having on your life.
21 Years Experience
Anxiety or Fears
Michele Sitorus (Inner Peace Psychological Care)
Psychologist, Psy.D.
In therapy for anxiety and fears, you will work on understanding the root causes of their anxiety and fears, often through techniques such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or exposure therapy. It is also important to learn coping skills to manage anxious thoughts and physical sensations, and gradually confront feared situations in a safe and supportive environment to build resilience and confidence.
5 Years Experience