Anxiety
It is normal to occasionally feel anxious - in unsettling or dangerous situations, our nervous system alerts us to a threat and prompts us to take action; in situations with high stakes like a sporting final or important exam, feeling anxious is to be expected and can energise and focus us. However, when the anxiety you're experiencing is persistent or exceeds the expected level of nerves for a situation, it can have a big impact on your daily life.
Mental Resilience
We work with athletes to build their capacity to bounce back after disappointments – whether it’s individual performance, team selection or losses.
Goal Setting
Set strategic goals for your performance with an actionable plan on how to achieve them, as well as managing personal expectations and external pressures.
Rehabilitation & Identity
Tailored support for when things don’t go to plan. Injuries can feel like major setbacks towards your performance goals, or can require you to change them all together, we’ll be there alongside you.
Personal Development
Difficulties off the field or court can impact your capacity to show up on game day. We can discuss anything that is on your mind, to get you back to your A-game.
How we help you excel
Do I have an Anxiety Disorder?
A qualified psychologist will compassionately listen to your concerns and ascertain whether your anxiety meets the criteria for an Anxiety Disorder diagnosis. Regardless of a diagnosis, seeking support when your anxiety feels unmanageable enables you to be guided towards the right strategies and approaches to help you manage your anxiety.
The strategies suggested will be tailored to the root cause of your anxiety, the severity and considerate of any co-occurring conditions such as depression, ADHD and OCD.
Generalised Anxiety Disorder
Panic
Disorder
An intense or irrational fear of something that poses little to no threat such as heights, animals or enclosed spaces.
Ongoing and excessive worry about a wide range of everyday issues.
Significant distress about being apart from someone there is an emotional connection with.
Episodes of intense fear, often described as a panic attack, brought on by no discernible trigger.
Fear of being in situations or environments where there is no identifiable exit. Often co-occurs with panic disorder.
Disproportionate fear in social settings such as meeting friends, job interviews, presentations and casual interactions
Social
Anxiety Disorder
Agoraphobia
Specific Phobia
Separation
Anxiety Disorder
How we work with anxiety
While anxiety is a common condition, we work with each client to address their individual concerns and develop a tailored therapy plan that meets their support needs and availability. Our psychologists use a variety of therapeutic approaches including CBT, DBT and ACT to help you manage your symptoms and improve your quality of life.
In the context of managing anxiety, these therapeutic approaches might look like:
CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)
Identifying unhelpful and unreliable thought patterns and challenging them with what will realistically will occur. In small and gradual steps, we’ll support you to intentionally engage in situations that have previously evoked anxiety to reduce your brains automatic response over time. During sessions, you might practise using mindfulness and breathing strategies that will calm your nervous system during moments of anxiety.
DBT (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy)
Focuses on identifying, understanding and being equipped to change emotional responses before they take over. We build up your capacity to recognise when the reality of the situation is different to what your emotions are telling you, and how to utilise the facts to diffuse your emotional reaction. During sessions, you might be taught how to utilise strategies to calm your nervous system using temperature, intense exercise, breath work and muscle relaxation.
ACT (Acceptance Commitment Therapy)
This approach equips you to experience and accept difficult emotions instead of avoiding them. Avoiding emotions can help in the short term but create longer term issues. Alongside conversation, a psychologist may use mindfulness exercises to bring your focus to the present as well as exploration of your values to focus on manageable steps that bring everyday behaviour closer to those values.
Psychologists who work with Anxiety
in Melbourne
All of our Psychologists are equipped to work with individuals experiencing anxiety and all bring a wide variety of life experience and clinical expertise to provide you with the support you need.
Not sure who would be the best fit?
Submit an enquiry here and our Admin team will be in touch to match you with a psychologist who suits your support needs and availability