Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety in Wilmington, NC

Your anxiety only increases your worrying and feelings of fear. And on certain days it may even cause an anxiety attack. One thing is for sure you are tired of letting anxiety control your life.

Starting therapy for anxiety and looking for an anxiety therapist can be really challenging and overwhelming. There are so many things to take into account. An important part of this is finding out what kind of therapy model works best for anxiety.

There are many anxiety treatments that work for anxiety therapy but I am going to focus on using cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety for this blog post. Keep reading the first blog post in this 3 part series blog about CBT vs ACT.

I’m a CBT therapist in Wilmington, NC and specialize in therapy for women. I use cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety treatment, treatment for perfectionism, overcome imposter syndrome, and to reduce burnout.

My CBT therapy services include cognitive behavioral therapy online in North Carolina and Maryland.

Start cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety with me by clicking on the button below to online book your free 15 minute consultation.

Schedule My Free 15 Minute Consultation

Keep reading to learn more about using CBT for anxiety treatment.

Check out the other blog post in this series about CBT vs ACT:

Is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Helpful for Anxiety?

CBT vs ACT for Anxiety Treatment

Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to Treat Common Anxiety Symptoms

There are many symptoms of anxiety that CBT can be used treat. Listed below are some of the most common anxiety symptoms:

Nervousness
Poor Sleep
Tension
Excessive Worrying
Restlessness
Difficulty Concentrating
Trouble Breathing
Fear
Thoughts of Impending Doom
Increased Heart Rate
Sweating

Increased anxiety can cause anxiety attacks and panic attacks.

4 Ways to Use CBT to Treat Anxiety

CBT is one of the most popular treatments for anxiety and it is also one of the most widely known among therapists. Here are 4 common ways cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety can be used.

#1 Providing Education to Understand Anxiety

In therapy terms this is called “psychoeducation.” This refers to teaching the client about a basic understanding of anxiety. Some of the following topics are covered in educating about anxiety:

What is anxiety?
How does anxiety work?
Where does anxiety come from?
What are the signs and symptoms of anxiety?
What are anxiety triggers?

#2 Relaxation Skills for Anxiety

Another important part of CBT is using relaxation skill techniques. These are helpful because they can be used to calm the body and mind down. Some examples of relaxation skills include:

Deep Breathing
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Passive Muscle Relaxation
5-4-3-2-1 (5 Senses Grounding Exercise)

#3 Challenging Anxious Thoughts

One of the key elements of using cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety is challenging anxious thoughts. The CBT therapist helps the client to identify worries and anxious thoughts and then develop systems and strategies to challenge and reframe the anxious thoughts. This is most commonly done using a “thought record” or chart to keep track of the anxious thoughts.

#4 CBT for Exposure

Often the feeling of fear is a common symptom of anxiety. When the feeling of fear is present, there is a signal that was sent from your brain telling you a situation or event is being interpreted as dangerous or harmful. In some cases this is completely justified and in other cases it may not be.

However, when using CBT to reduce a fear or phobia of something an exposure hierarchy is created and worked through to desensitize you from experiencing the panic.

You can also check out this blog post on how to get the most out of anxiety therapy by clicking here!

For more information about cognitive behavioral therapy, check out this helpful blog post by clicking here!

Start Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety in Wilmington, NC

Cognitive behavioral therapy can be very helpful for treating anxiety. CBT can provide you with skills and strategies to reduce anxiety and an understanding of how anxiety works.

To start CBT for anxiety at Calm Waters Counseling, you only need to follow these 4 simple steps:

Click the button below to online schedule your free 15 minute consultation
Complete the brief questionnaire that arrives to your email before the consultation
Meet with your CBT therapist
Start using CBT to reduce anxiety

Schedule My Free 15 Minute Consultation

Other Services for CBT Therapy in Wilmington, NC

To learn more about me and my Wilmington, NC counseling practice, click here! In addition to providing CBT for anxiety in Wilmington, NC, I also specialize in therapy for women and use CBT for perfectionism treatment, overcome imposter syndrome, and for burnout counseling.

Learn more about each of these specialities in these helpful blog posts:

Treatment for Perfectionism in Wilmington, NC

Therapy for Imposter Syndrome in Wilmington, NC

Burnout treatment in Wilmington, NC

In addition to in-person therapy appointments I also offer online therapy in Maryland and North Carolina.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Online in North Carolina

and

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Online in Maryland

Online therapy is a really helpful and useful way to provide therapy. CBT therapy can still be used on an online therapy platform because the CBT therapist and client are able to still see and hear each other.