Psychotherapy for Anxiety and Relationships: Philadelphia, PA.
Are you troubled in your relationships?
Do you feel gripped in a vicious cycle of anxiety and unending worry?
Feel free to use this site, including this self-reporting anxiety severity test and my writing as a source of education and healing.
When you are ready to stop suffering and take action, pick up the phone or send me a request for a consultation by filling in the form to the right.
I specialize in working with individuals struggling with anxiety, and with couples working to find peace and satisfaction in their relationship. I have been practicing as a psychotherapist since 1994. Several years ago I moved my practice to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from the Upper West Side in New York City.
| Are you Anxious? |
| Written by David Steinberg, PhD |
| Thursday, 07 January 2010 12:40 |
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Does the threat of a panic attack follow you around like a bad smell? Are you losing whole nights of sleep, or waking up with your heart racing and parts of your body tingling? The experience of panic can make you feel so out of control, and it can become a self-fulfilling prophecy and a vicious cycle, as the worrying about panicking triggers more panic, and the more you have panic attacks, the more you worry about getting them. What this boils down to is a fear of losing control. You have no ability to control your thoughts, so you literally start to fear them. You worry about what you will think about and how that will affect you constantly, and ultimately this is deeply exhausting and a total drain. The constant chatter in your brain can give you some real anxiety.For many, it is like having an elephant sitting on their chest, and the slightest physical feeling can lead to an out of control attack. Medication can be helpful, but many people are afraid of going on medication because they don’t want to become addicted and dependent on a foreign substance for the rest of their lives. For some, the act of going on medication itself becomes a deep source of anxiety and stress. What is absolutely certain? Wherever your mind is focused is where your energy will be. If you obsess over panicking, then you will probably continue to panic. The more panic attacks you have, the more you will obsess over the possibility of getting one. It truly is a nasty cycle, but with some focus and discipline it can be stopped! As a therapist, I have been working with panic and anxiety for eighteen years. What I have discovered is that for those who panic, there tends to be a lack of regulation in the mind-body system. When I treat panic and anxiety, I tend to work from both sides of the equation, because I feel this is the way to have the best opportunity to heal and reverse the lack of emotional and physical regulation.What does this mean? Well, in addition to doing cognitive work, I also encourage my patients to become aware of the physical realm as well. I teach meditation, and also work with my patients on the way they breathe and hold their bodies. Nobody teaches us how to be in our bodies in school. We are taught to think and remember, but there is very little emphasis on how to sit, stand or breathe. Learning how to control the mind through breathing (pranayama) is an ancient yogic science, and it works wonders for people with panic disorder. For more information or to request a consultation, pick up the phone and give me a call, or fill in the request a consultation form at the top of this page.
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