Counseling Services for Anxiety in Ann Arbor, MI

Anxiety—we all know it too well. It is feeling of worry, nervousness, remorse, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. It can be relatively simple, such as anxiety over an important final examination. Or more complex such as, “What am I going to do for the rest of my life?” Anxiety can be seen as a form of fear.

Occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive, and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety, fear, or terror that reach a peak within minutes—panic attacks.

Anxiety can grow to a disorder if feelings like these are difficult to control, interfere with daily activities, are out of proportion to the actual danger involved, or last a long time.

The symptoms of anxiety:

Feeling nervous, restless, or tense
Having a sense of impending danger, panic, or doom
Increased heart rate
Rapid breathing (hyperventilation)
Sweating
Trembling
Feeling weak or tired
Trouble concentrating or thinking about anything other than the present worry
Having trouble sleeping
Gastrointestinal (GI) problems such as persistent stomachaches where no real medical cause can be found, or persistent “butterflies” in you stomach.
Having difficulty controlling worry
Having the urge to avoid things that trigger anxiety

While anxiety and anxiety disorder vary greatly from one person to the next, people who live with anxiety can feel as if they are in a room with no windows and utterly unable to imagine anything but disaster happening right outside. Anxiety constantly victimizes the sufferers by convincing them that there is danger and calamity around every corner. People suffering from anxiety may use self-sabotaging, destructive behaviors to try and cope with their stress, leading them to self-medicate with alcohol, drugs, or even self-harm. That is why it is essential to recognize and address the symptoms of anxiety when they happen and to seek the help of counseling or therapy.

Anxiety is a destabilizing and often debilitating disorder. For many, anxiety conditions can severely impact their lives, their decisions, and their relationships, and affect their ability to work, do well in school, or function in everyday life.

While our minds are wired to recognize and avoid danger when possible, the apprehension and concern that sufferers from anxiety feel is on a much higher scale. Anxiety can also come from the perception of a threat when there is none. Anxiety creates the illusion that the world is a place to avoid, fear, or reject when in reality, most risks have little downside. Without risk, there will be no gain.

Fortunately, there is help for you if you suffer from the symptoms of anxiety or if you have an anxiety disorder. Recovery from anxiety problems is possible. Professional therapy or counseling often enables people to learn new, healthier coping strategies. A mental health professional can help you assess if you have an anxiety disorder with an interview and by using an evaluative questionnaire designed for this purpose.

Please call or email for more information or to make an appointment.

(734) 761-7204

thecounselingctr@sbcglobal.net

Helping People Grow and Thrive - Since 1983