Stress, PTSD and Anxiety Therapists in Irvine, CA.

People rarely come to counseling when their anxiety first starts causing them problems. Most people try to handle it on their own and try the “white knuckle” approach until they are exhausted and overwhelmed. Often life becomes unmanageable and depression sets in when anxiety is not dealt with. Anxiety commonly focuses on illogical things that may seem foolish or kind of crazy, so you have kept these to yourself. Don’t keep struggling alone. Call me so I can help you reduce the hold anxiety has on you and restore freedom to live your life fully again. Contact me at 714-751-0888 and I promise I won't think you are crazy.

Stress and anxiety can be extremely uncomfortable but at the same time these are actually areas that therapy is the most able to help relieve. An important step is to help my clients learn how to transition the nervous system out of the fight/flight/freeze response into a state of relaxation. That alarm state is good for helping the individual respond to an emergency but it greatly reduces flexibility. Once out the reactive sympathetic nervous system state my clients can then find new ways of thinking and responding. In order to help them to get out of the alarm mode, I teach a variety of skills both directly and indirectly.

Anxiety and stress are the symptoms I treat most often in my practice. Some people are not aware, but trauma is deep-rooted anxiety that is held within our body. We can feel anxious about work, children, relationships, or family. We can feel stressed about work or relationships and friendships. A highly effective tool for treating these symptoms is mindfulness. Mindfulness is a way that you can learn to relax the anxiety that is held within your body and your mind. I love this technique because it is not only highly effective, but it is very easy to learn. You can walk away from your first therapy session with a start to your mindfulness journey and have real tools at your disposal.

Everyone feels anxiety at some point in their lives but when it starts to interfere with your life, counseling can help. Although anxiety can feel debilitating, it is treatable. People with anxiety don’t always share the same symptoms, they vary from person to person. Therapy will help you to reclaim your life and function in a chronically stressful world.

There’s a fine line between stress and anxiety. Both are emotional responses, but stress is typically caused by an external trigger. The trigger can be short-term, such as a work deadline or a fight with a loved one or long-term, such as being unable to work, discrimination, or chronic illness. People under stress experience mental and physical symptoms, such as irritability, anger, fatigue, muscle pain, digestive troubles, and difficulty sleeping. Anxiety, on the other hand, is defined by persistent, excessive worries that don’t go away even in the absence of a stressor. Anxiety leads to a nearly identical set of symptoms as stress: insomnia, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, muscle tensi

Anxiety affects your whole being. Physiologically, you may experience rapid heart beat, muscle tension, queasiness, and sweating. Behaviorally, anxiety can sabotage your ability to deal with certain everyday situations. Psychologically, it can cause great apprehension, uneasiness, and fear. In our counseling sessions, we will address all of the way that anxiety is affecting you. I will teach you methods to reduce physical symptoms, eliminate avoidance behaviors, and change the "self talk" that helps to perpetuate the worry. Through the use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), we will work towards changing the thought and behavior patterns that add to your distress.

Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, anxiety disorders and ongoing chronic stress can appear as repeated episodes of worry & fear, or develop into sudden feelings of intense anxiety with physical sensations, known as panic attacks. Your anxiety may feel related to an event or thought, and other times appear to occur randomly and without cause. Anxiety can develop at any age, when left untreated it may develop into depression. In therapy we will explore how anxiety is affecting your life. You will learn how your physical, emotional and mental health are connected and together create an effective treatment plan specific to your goals to improve your well-being.

Dr. Laura Adams (949) 244-1992 www.SouthOCTherapist.com, is a marriage and family therapist and Psychoanalyst with offices in Newport Beach and Mission Viejo. Dr. Laura Adams specializes in psychodynamic psychotherapy for long-term depression, stress and anxiety issues for individuals, couples and families. Dr. Adams works with patients by listening for unconsious communications that contain understandings that can bring to light the underlying roots of the symptoms. Dr. Adams has been in private practice in South Orange County since 2004 and can be verified on the Psychology Today website.

I work with clients using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, mindfulness, Narrative Therapy, Expressive Arts, and psychoeducation to address anxiety and stress. Many folks are experiencing extreme stress as a result of all we have experienced in the last year. I'm able to work with clients experiencing burnout, increased anxiety, and higher stress relying on neuroscience as the guide.

With the current times, stress and anxiety may be heightened and affecting various aspects of your life such as: work, relationships, sleep, and every day responsibilities. Anxiety can be overwhelming but it can be treated and you will get better. I will help you learn tools to manage and decrease your anxiety by developing an awareness of your triggers.

I take a practical approach to treating anxiety and stress. I help you identify the sources of anxiety if you do not already know them. I support you in learning skills to regulate your emotions and increase awareness of body sensations and experiences in order to help you be able to control and reduce feelings of anxiety. I also use a combination of exposure therapy, if appropriate, and adjustment to lifestyle to help you reduce or eliminate sources of anxiety or stress. I know that every experience of anxiety or stress is unique and I will work with you to develop a plan of support tailored to your needs. I will provide a safe environment for you to challenge and overcome your fear/stress

I specialize in helping people who struggle with never feeling quite “enough" and want freedom from shame and anxiety. The torment of living with an inner critical voice is exhausting. Achieving more is not the answer. Looking better and trying harder are not the solutions. You deserve to trust yourself and feel comfortable in your own skin. I would like to help you discover self-acceptance and find liberation from anxiety.