Anxiety is the body’s natural response to stress or trauma; it is characterized by feelings of apprehension, a sense of impending danger, and physical symptoms. Sometimes these anxious feelings last for long periods of time, and if they persist more than six months, you may be diagnosed with anxiety disorder. 

Anxiety disorders include:

• Agoraphobia
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder
• Panic Disorder
• Selective Mutism
• Separation Anxiety Disorder
• Social Anxiety Disorder
• Phobias
• Substance-Induced Anxiety Disorder

According to the American Psychiatric Association, approximately 30 percent of adults are affected by an anxiety disorder at some point in their life. Luckily, there are multiple treatments available for anxiety disorders and stressful situations that elicit short-term anxiety. 

The regimen you receive depends on the type of anxiety you have and your individual preference. Different forms can be combined to create the perfect treatment plan that’s just right for you.  

Anxiety treatments include:

1. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

A type of psychotherapy (also known as talk therapy), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) helps you change your thought process from negative to positive. 

A psychotherapist or other mental health counselor can help to identify negative thinking and anxiety triggers. These stress activators could be situations such as divorce or loss, or other issues including medical conditions, anger, or symptoms of a mental health disorder. 

Your therapist will help you choose which problem to focus on and guide you on how to respond in a more effective way. To do so, a psychotherapist may ask you to become aware of your thoughts and emotions, listening to what you tell yourself about these problematic situations and keeping a journal of your thoughts. With your therapist, you’ll work on reshaping your negative reactions and inaccurate perceptions to healthier responses until they become an effortless habit. 

Northport Wellness Center Alliance is a virtual office referral program featuring practitioners across a wide range of specialties. Alliance members Melissa Jennings, LCSW-R, and Valentina Stoycheva, PhD, possess years of experience using cognitive behavioral therapy to treat anxiety disorders.

2. Neurofeedback Therapy

Neurofeedback therapy is a non-invasive brain-training program that stimulates this complex organ, improving focus, helping you sleep better, and enabling you to relax better during the day. It trains a brain with atypical brain waves to produce normal patterns. 

This technique is used to help patients with Neurological Dysregulation Syndrome (NDS), a condition in which someone’s nervous system doesn’t produce regular brain-wave activity. The syndrome manifests in children and adults with anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. 

To undergo neurofeedback training, patients an initial assessment of your condition using quantitative electroencephalography to find irregularities in your brain wave patterns. Once those are located, you’ll complete several training sessions to teach your brain to produce appropriate energy levels.  

Northport Wellness Center offers a Neurofeedback (Braincore) program run by Michael Reid, DC, and Jason Pape, DC. 

3. TERRAP Anxiety Treatment

TERRAP (an acronym for territorial apprehension) is a comprehensive and effective treatment program created by Arthur Hardy, MD for panic attacks, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, general anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and others.

The TERRAP approach combines education, relaxation, cognitive behavioral therapy and exposure therapy, helping you confront your fears and break habits of avoidance. TERRAP uses education to “reign in” the imagination present in anxiety, provides the tools and coping mechanisms necessary to prevent anxiety attacks, teaches you how to identify and express your feelings, and transforms your thoughts from negative to positive.

Clinical psychologist and Northport Wellness Center Alliance member Julian Herskowitz has directed the most successful branch of the only national anxiety and phobia treatment center in the country, TERRAP Anxiety and Phobia Care. 

Check out our blog “What’s Included in a Pediatric Anxiety Treatment Plan” to learn how children with anxiety are treated. For more information about anxiety treatments, contact us today.