Anxiety is a natural human emotion that everyone experiences from time to time. It’s a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. However, when anxiety becomes excessive, persistent, and interferes with daily life, it may indicate an anxiety disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).

Table of Contents

Understanding Anxiety

While everyone experiences anxiety differently, it commonly involves:

Excessive Worry: Persistent and uncontrollable worry about various things, often out of proportion to the actual situation.
Physical Symptoms: A racing heart, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, dizziness, muscle tension, fatigue, and sleep disturbances.
Cognitive Symptoms: Difficulty concentrating, racing thoughts, restlessness, and a sense of impending doom.
Behavioral Changes: Avoidance of situations that trigger anxiety, difficulty relaxing, and changes in social interaction.

Common Types of Anxiety Disorders

While anxiety can manifest in many ways, some common anxiety disorders include:

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Characterized by chronic and excessive worry about various aspects of life, even when there’s little or no reason to worry. Individuals with GAD often find it difficult to control their worry and experience symptoms like restlessness, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability, muscle tension, and sleep disturbances. This worry can be about everyday things like work, school, family, health, or finances, but it can also be about more abstract things like the future or the state of the world (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Social Anxiety Disorder: Involves intense fear of social situations, often stemming from a worry of being judged, embarrassed, or humiliated. People with social anxiety may avoid social interactions altogether, experience significant distress in social settings, or overanalyze their social performance afterward. Physical symptoms like blushing, sweating, trembling, or nausea are common in social situations. This fear can be specific to certain types of social situations, such as public speaking or meeting new people, or it can be more generalized (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Separation Anxiety Disorder: While more commonly diagnosed in children, separation anxiety can also affect adults. It involves excessive fear or anxiety about separation from attachment figures, such as romantic partners, close friends, or family members. Individuals with separation anxiety may worry excessively about harm coming to their loved ones or experience significant distress when separated from them. This can lead to difficulties in maintaining relationships and pursuing personal goals (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Specific Phobia: A specific phobia is an intense and irrational fear of a specific object or situation. Common phobias include fear of animals (spiders, snakes, dogs), natural environments (heights, water, storms), blood-injection-injury (seeing blood or receiving injections), and situational phobias (flying, enclosed spaces, elevators). When faced with the feared object or situation, individuals with specific phobias experience immediate and intense anxiety, often leading to avoidance behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Panic Disorder: Characterized by recurrent and unexpected panic attacks, which are sudden episodes of intense fear accompanied by physical symptoms like a racing heart, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, dizziness, and chest pain. People with panic disorder may also experience anticipatory anxiety, which is the fear of having another panic attack. This can lead to avoidance of situations where panic attacks have occurred or where escape might be difficult (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).

How Treating Anxiety With CBT Can Help

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for anxiety disorders (Hofmann et al., 2012). It focuses on identifying and changing negative or uphelpful thought patterns and behaviors that contribute to anxiety. CBT is based on the idea that our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected, and that by changing our thoughts, we can change our feelings and behaviors.

CBT techniques for anxiety include:

Cognitive restructuring: Identifying and challenging negative or anxious thoughts, replacing them with more balanced and realistic ones. This involves learning to recognize cognitive distortions, such as catastrophizing (“I’m going to fail this exam and ruin my entire life”) or overgeneralizing (“I’m always messing things up”), and developing more helpful and adaptive ways of thinking. For example, instead of thinking “I’m going to have a panic attack and embarrass myself,” you might reframe it as “I’ve felt this way before, and I know I can manage it.”
Exposure therapy: Gradually confronting feared situations or objects in a safe and controlled environment to reduce anxiety. This involves creating a hierarchy of feared situations, starting with the least anxiety-provoking and gradually working up to the most feared. For example, someone with social anxiety might start by making eye contact with a stranger, then progress to having a brief conversation, and eventually attending a social event. Exposure therapy can be done in vivo (in real life) or in imagination.
Relaxation techniques: Learning skills like deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and mindfulness to manage physical symptoms of anxiety. These techniques can help you calm your body and mind, reducing physiological arousal and promoting a sense of relaxation. For example, practicing deep breathing exercises can help slow your heart rate and reduce feelings of panic.
Behavioral experiments: Testing out anxious thoughts and predictions in real-life situations to gather evidence and challenge negative beliefs. This involves designing experiments to test the validity of your fears and to learn that you can cope with anxiety-provoking situations. For example, if you fear public speaking, you might volunteer to give a presentation to a small group to test your prediction that you’ll have a panic attack and be unable to speak.

Finding Relief from Anxiety

If you’re struggling with anxiety, online CBT may provide you with the tools and support you need to manage your symptoms, regain control of your thoughts and feelings, and obtain your goals.

Why Online Therapy?

Online therapy offers several benefits:

Convenience: Access therapy from the comfort of your own home.
Flexibility: Schedule sessions that fit your busy lifestyle.
Accessibility: Reach a therapist regardless of your location in Oklahoma.
Privacy: Enjoy a greater sense of privacy and confidentiality.

Ready to Connect? If you’re curious about online therapy and how it might benefit you, I invite you to schedule a free 15-minute consultation. We can discuss your needs, explore whether we’re a good fit, and answer any questions you may have.

Derek Minor, MA, Licensed Professional Counselor

Licensed to provide therapy in Oklahoma

Request Appointment

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional medical or mental health advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare professional for personalized guidance.

References

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

Anxiety and Depression Association of America. (n.d.). Facts & Statistics. Retrieved from https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/facts-statistics

Hofmann, S. G., Asnaani, A., Vonk, I. J., Sawyer, A. T., & Fang, A. (2012). The efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy: A review ofmeta-analyses. Cognitive therapy and research, 36(5), 427-440. Sources and related content