Therapy for Anxiety and Burnout

Anxiety can manifest in many different ways. Some of the common symptoms are elevated heart rate, distressing thoughts about future events or past experiences, stomach aches, negative self talk, insomnia, and/or a sense of fear or impending doom. Our day to day work stress levels can directly impact the intensity of our anxiety.

Sometimes there is a specific event that causes our anxiety to go from feeling manageable to completely overwhelming, and sometimes difficult lived experiences accumulate in a way that cause our bodies to function in a heightened “fight or flight” state as a means of survival. Past traumatic experiences can manifest as symptoms of anxiety as well, as our bodies are unsure of whether we are safe or not in our environment.

Anxiety can keep us in cycles of shame and regret, and I am here to help you move to a place of compassion, curiosity, and rest. You no longer need to live with the burden of these thoughts. Therapy is a space where you and I will work together can unlearn these harmful beliefs while uncovering an intrinsic source of motivation that fuels you from a place of love and compassion, not fear and shame.

Get the help you need now.

Why do I feel this way?

Anxiety is a signal from our bodies that we are sensing some type of threat, whether physical or emotional. We have highly adapted survival instincts and responses, and anxiety is one of them. It is a gift that we can receive such strong protective signals from our bodies. Sometimes, though, our sensitivity to those signals becomes very acute, and we feel completely overwhelmed at even a hint of anxiety. We often begin to feel burned out because we are operating from a constant state of worry and do not feel like we are ever allowed to rest. My work emphasizes the importance of rest, and I will help you begin to set and hold strong boundaries around taking breaks and resting.

Therapy is resource where you will learn how to ground yourself into a sense of safety within your body, even when experiencing stress and anxiety. I will help you restructure your relationship with feelings of anxiety, so that you feel safe and in control of your response to these feelings. Together, you and I will work to help you trust yourself to use your tools when anxiety and burnout arise.

Will I lose motivation if I don’t feel stressed?

Often times, people who are highly motivated and high achieving believe their anxiety is at least partially responsible for their achievements. They feel that the nagging, judgmental voice in the back of their mind that tells them they aren’t good enough is one of the strongest motivators they have. On the flip side, these judgmental thoughts are extremely emotionally draining, and over time solidify the belief that we are only “good enough” when we are highly productive and have something to show for ourselves. The over-identification with how we perform at work can be recipe for burnout.

It is a common worry that learning to manage anxiety will strip people of their motivation, but that is not the case. Self compassion and care is a much stronger, more sustainable foundation from which motivation and self worth can grow and thrive. You will still have the capacity to reach your goals without the nagging fear of not being good enough.

Stress is a part of life, just like any other emotional experience, but burnout does not have to be. The goal is not to completely remove stress from your life, but to create healthy, sustainable habits that allow you to move through feelings of stress and anxiety in a way that is not fear based or forced. Working through your anxiety and burnout can also allow you to create deeper, more meaningful relationships with the people in your life, as you will no longer feel like you have to hide yourself and your needs from others.

Begin therapy for anxiety in the South Bay today!