Therapy for Anxiety Disorders in Thousand Oaks, CA

Anxiety is a normal and healthy response to stress. It can help us increase our concentration, improve motivation, cope with pressures at work or home, and deal with difficult tasks. In its extreme forms, though, anxiety can become an immobilizing disorder.

If you would like to discuss anxiety disorders in Thousand Oaks, CA, please call Laura Thomas, Ph.D. I am a licensed psychologist and therapist that helps individuals cope with their anxiety symptoms. Additionally, I support these individuals as they identify and work through their symptoms’ underlying causes. Anxiety disorders most commonly exhibit in the varieties described below.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

Perhaps the most common, as well as the most commonly untreated, anxiety disorder, GAD affects millions of adults in the United States. Physical symptoms include sweating, insomnia, headaches, muscle tension, shaking or trembling, and general irritability. Other symptoms include unwarranted, but frequent and elevated, worrying over everyday events. Please reach out to me if you would like to discuss healthy stress reduction techniques to treat your GAD symptoms.

Panic Disorder

Those who are suffering from panic disorder experience acute and unbearable episodes of terror, which strike swiftly and without warning. Symptoms may include pounding heart, numbness, chest pain, dizziness, hot or cold sensations, acute nausea, and are sometimes accompanied by a sense of unreality or fear of imminent doom. As your psychologist, I will help you deal effectively with situations that induce these responses.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

OCD is usually characterized by unwanted and uncontrollable thoughts and rituals, which are excessively repeated and tend to consume the daily lives of those with this disorder. It is possibly the least understood anxiety disorder among the general public. OCD is an extreme form of mental obsession combined with compulsive action. The disorder is a combination of thought patterns and behaviors that produce severe anxiety in those who are affected.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

PTSD results from experiencing a traumatic event. Events that are known to be common causes of PTSD are rape, abuse, and war. Other common causes are experiencing a natural disaster, surviving a plane crash, and being in a car accident. Symptoms vary but usually include some combination of nightmares, flashbacks, depression, sleeplessness, panic attacks, unpredictability, emotional numbing, and an inability to maintain concentration. Individuals with PTSD are often easily distracted, have a quick startle response, and sometimes exhibit flash tempers.

Attempting to deal with an anxiety disorder on one’s own may produce little or no result. By working with me, though, you can gain effective tools for dealing with your anxiety symptoms.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

What is Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)?

• MBSR is clinically proven to alleviate stress, anxiety, panic, depression, chronic pain, and improve a wide range of medical conditions
• MBSR is taught worldwide
• MBSR focuses on the present moment to change permanently the way one handles stress

Benefits

We will focus on how to replace stress-inducing habits with mindful ones. Building healthy skills that will last a lifetime. Stress and pain are nearly unavoidable in our lives. Stress can leave us feeling irritable, tense, overwhelmed, and burned-out. The key to a balanced response to stress lies in mindful, non-judgmental awareness of our bodies and minds. This can be learned in just a few short weeks.

Topics May Include

• Mindful Breathing
• Mindfulness in Daily Life
• Mindful Self-Inquiry
• Mindful Walking
• Mindfulness of the Emotions
• Mindful Interpersonal Communication
• and More

Contact Laura Thomas, Ph.D. to schedule your appointment. I provide a personalized approach to therapy for clients in Thousand Oaks, California.