MINDSPACE CLINICAL COUNSELING
Therapy for Anxiety
Psychotherapy for adults, adolescents, children, & families ready to make space for more living. Rockville, Gaithersburg, Frederick, and Across Maryland.
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FIND RELIEF
GET THE TOOLS YOU NEED
MOVE
FORWARD
Anxiety is a thief,
robbing you of your peace, joy, and often your sense of self.
If you want to go from:
- Irritable to……happy and more relaxed
- Isolated to……connected and fulfilling relationships
- Living in fear to…..living with confidence!
- Exhausted to……sleeping peacefully
- Avoiding people or places to…..embracing life
- Feeling stuck to……relieved, peaceful, and happy
Therapy can help you take back control and fully enjoy living in the present!
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Mindspace Clinical Counseling
What is anxiety and how is it different from stress?
Stress and anxiety are normal parts of the human experience – we all feel stressed or anxious at times. Although they both can become overwhelming and disruptive to your daily living, there are some important differences.
Stress is a natural response to a specific real or perceived threat or demand. It’s often referred to as the body’s “fight or flight” response and is designed to help you respond to immediate challenges. Stress can be beneficial in some situations, motivating you to perform well or stay alert. However, when stress becomes chronic or overwhelming, it can have negative effects on physical and mental health. Stressors can be external (such as work deadlines or relationship problems) or internal (like self-imposed pressure or worry).
Anxiety is a broad term that refers to feelings of unease, fear, or worry about future events or situations. People who suffer from anxiety often feel like they are expecting a crisis to happen at any moment. Anxiety can be a normal response to certain life events or challenges, but when it becomes chronic or excessive, therapy can offer the support you need to bring it to a manageable level.
What are the symptoms of anxiety?
The effects of anxiety show up in your mind and body, with each of them contributing to the affect on the other.
If you often feel:
- Tense, nervous, or unable to relax
- Like something bad is about to happen
- Restless, nauseated, or shaky
- Your heart racing, along with dizziness
- Worried that people are upset with you
- Disconnected from your mind or body
- Disconnected from the people you love
- Irritable or easily becoming agitated
You may be suffering from anxiety.
Understanding the mind-body connection is a big part of addressing anxiety effectively, recognizing that it’s not just, ‘all in your head,’ but a real, whole-body experience.
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How does anxiety therapy help?
Therapy can help you:
Shift Unhelpful Patterns
Anxiety makes you feel like you are stuck in a loop, with anxiety-driven thoughts leading you to avoid certain activities or situations, which in turn produces more negative thoughts and increased anxiety. In therapy, we focus on two main things: facing your fear and changing how you think about it. By exploring the connection between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, we can help you gradually confront your anxiety triggers, see them from a new perspective, and break the cycle, allowing you to enjoy a more fulfilling and balanced life!
Find Your Courage
Courage means feeling scared but going for it anyway – and starting therapy is a giant courageous leap! Together, we’ll pick a new challenge for you to try, something that’s a little uncomfortable but manageable. When we meet again, we talk about how it went – what worked for you and what didn’t. We are here to cheer you on as you tackle each challenge. It’s okay to be scared; that’s normal. The key is recognizing and validating your fears while simultaneously empowering you to step beyond them, one courageous act at a time.
Put Anxiety in Its Place
Addressing anxiety doesn’t always have to be a serious process. We find that infusing our sessions with a bit of fun and humor can transform the way we view anxiety. By incorporating engaging and light-hearted elements, we gradually shift anxiety from a state of crisis to something more manageable, demoting it to where it belongs, stripping away its overwhelming power, and making it something you can handle with confidence and a smile. Another bonus to this approach is that it helps you feel more comfortable taking steps forward into uncertain territory – and we are with you every step of the way.
Understand How Anxiety Affects You
We believe that true healing takes place where there is true understanding, and we spend a large part of our time in the beginning helping you understand what’s happening. We teach you how anxiety works in the brain and body and how the treatment process will work so you can feel more informed and empowered throughout our time together. By exploring the nuances of your personal experience with anxiety, we can tailor our approach to suit your specific needs and challenges. This foundational understanding paves the way for developing practical strategies and tools, helping you feel supported and equipped to manage your anxiety effectively.
Understand How Anxiety Affects Your Child
Kids deal with anxiety, too, but it doesn’t show up in the same ways that it does for adults, and they may not have the words to express it. Instead, it can show up as changes in behavior – like being extra clingy, having outbursts, or avoiding certain activities they used to enjoy. They might also complain of physical symptoms, like stomachaches or headaches, especially in situations that make them nervous.
In therapy, we help you learn to recognize these subtle signs and how to support your child best when you see them show up. We also use gentle methods to help your child learn how to express and manage their feelings in a way that feels natural to them. Parents play a big role in helping children feel safe and calm, and we are here to support you as you support them.
Anxiety makes you feel like you are stuck in a loop, with anxiety-driven thoughts leading you to avoid certain activities or situations, which in turn produces more negative thoughts and increased anxiety. In therapy, we focus on two main things: facing your fear and changing how you think about it. By exploring the connection between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, we can help you gradually confront your anxiety triggers, see them from a new perspective, and break the cycle, allowing you to enjoy a more fulfilling and balanced life!
Courage means feeling scared but going for it anyway – and starting therapy is a giant courageous leap! Together, we’ll pick a new challenge for you to try, something that’s a little uncomfortable but manageable. When we meet again, we talk about how it went – what worked for you and what didn’t. We are here to cheer you on as you tackle each challenge. It’s okay to be scared; that’s normal. The key is recognizing and validating your fears while simultaneously empowering you to step beyond them, one courageous act at a time.
Addressing anxiety doesn’t always have to be a serious process. We find that infusing our sessions with a bit of fun and humor can transform the way we view anxiety. By incorporating engaging and light-hearted elements, we gradually shift anxiety from a state of crisis to something more manageable, demoting it to where it belongs, stripping away its overwhelming power, and making it something you can handle with confidence and a smile. Another bonus to this approach is that it helps you feel more comfortable taking steps forward into uncertain territory – and we are with you every step of the way.
We believe that true healing takes place where there is true understanding, and we spend a large part of our time in the beginning helping you understand what’s happening. We teach you how anxiety works in the brain and body and how the treatment process will work so you can feel more informed and empowered throughout our time together. By exploring the nuances of your personal experience with anxiety, we can tailor our approach to suit your specific needs and challenges. This foundational understanding paves the way for developing practical strategies and tools, helping you feel supported and equipped to manage your anxiety effectively.
Kids deal with anxiety, too, but it doesn’t show up in the same ways that it does for adults, and they may not have the words to express it. Instead, it can show up as changes in behavior – like being extra clingy, having outbursts, or avoiding certain activities they used to enjoy. They might also complain of physical symptoms, like stomachaches or headaches, especially in situations that make them nervous.
In therapy, we help you learn to recognize these subtle signs and how to support your child best when you see them show up. We also use gentle methods to help your child learn how to express and manage their feelings in a way that feels natural to them. Parents play a big role in helping children feel safe and calm, and we are here to support you as you support them.
Book A Free Consultation
Find A Therapist
Who We Are
About Mindspace Clinical Counseling
I believe people want to be heard, feel like they belong, and experience meaningful connections in their lives.
The problem is that we often hide our true selves behind the expectations and values of others. We lose sight of the person who started this journey – the child filled with hopes and dreams.
I am a mother of 10-year-old twin boys. I am a wife, a sister, and a daughter of immigrant parents. My history, my challenges, and my personal story are what brought me to this place in life. I became a therapist to help other people navigate the very real difficulties keeping them from living a life filled with hope, possibility, and joy.
As my waitlist filled, I built Mindspace Counseling with a team of therapists who work with you to achieve the healing you need to live better.
Taking that first step is not always easy. No matter what you’re going through, know that you are not alone. We’re here to hold space for you and whatever you are facing on your road to healing and growth.
We are here to listen.
Esther Kim
CLINIC FOUNDER
LCSW-C | CCATP | CCATP-CA | CCTP II
At Mindspace Clinical Counseling, we believe that:
Commitment
We are committed to helping you achieve your goals in a purposeful and intentional way.
Perseverance
By learning to sit with the discomfort of what you are dealing with, we can help you work through each moment so you can come out stronger.
Compassion
We are all trying the best we can. We are here to sit with you in your pain and celebrate your successes.
Empowerment
When the journey gets hard, we help you find the strength to move forward into change and create lasting results.
are at the heart of healing and transformation.
HOW ANXIETY THERAPY WORKS
Our Approach to Anxiety Therapy
We know this can be tough. We’ll walk with you.
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01. We get to know you
What does your life look like right now? What challenges are you trying to work through? In the first session, we want to hear your story and get to know you as a person. We want to build a trusting, open connection.
02. We develop your goals
If you could experience peace & happiness today, what would be different in your life? Exploring the answers to these questions will help up identify your goals and develop a treatment plan tailored to you.
03. We take it One step at a time
Are you ready to take action on your goals? Your brain is like a muscle, and with practice, creating new patterns will become natural. We’ll choose challenges to take on during the week that will help you practice what we explore during the session. We assess what’s working, and adjust as needed.
Commonly
Asked Questions
What if my child has anxiety? Is it more effective to have family sessions instead of having my child meet with you individually?
When working with children and adolescents, it’s beneficial for parents to be actively involved by attending therapy sessions with their children. The child feels more supported and feels more empowered to actively work on goals when they know there is an entire team cheering them on. Parents also feel supported and empowered when they can share challenges and their own struggles with anxiety. We often see how parents get to work on their own anxiety with their children. Additionally, because therapy is often 45-60 minute weekly sessions, the child has so much living that occurs during the week. Therapy is much more effective when the family can work on strategies throughout the week, and parents are essential to help support this.
How can therapy help me with my anxiety?
Having anxiety can leave people feeling hopeless, isolated, unmotivated, stuck, and afraid. Therapy can help with all of this! A therapist can help to create a space for you to feel seen and heard, while encouraging you to step into your fears and help you feel empowered to take your anxiety down! You learn ways to manage anxiety so that you can step into the life you envision and have hoped for.
How do you treat anxiety?
We use a combination of CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and ERP (Exposure Response Prevention). We work on learning how anxiety operates in the brain and the body, and how anxiety makes you feel like everything is a crisis. We get really good at leaning into fears and worries, and changing how we think about it, which results in a changed relationship with fear. We challenge you to find the courage and grit to trust the process and step into uncertainty and discomfort.
The good news is, anxiety is treatable. You can get better. Let’s do it together!
When working with children and adolescents, it’s beneficial for parents to be actively involved by attending therapy sessions with their children. The child feels more supported and feels more empowered to actively work on goals when they know there is an entire team cheering them on. Parents also feel supported and empowered when they can share challenges and their own struggles with anxiety. We often see how parents get to work on their own anxiety with their children. Additionally, because therapy is often 45-60 minute weekly sessions, the child has so much living that occurs during the week. Therapy is much more effective when the family can work on strategies throughout the week, and parents are essential to help support this. Having anxiety can leave people feeling hopeless, isolated, unmotivated, stuck, and afraid. Therapy can help with all of this! A therapist can help to create a space for you to feel seen and heard, while encouraging you to step into your fears and help you feel empowered to take your anxiety down! You learn ways to manage anxiety so that you can step into the life you envision and have hoped for.
We use a combination of CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and ERP (Exposure Response Prevention). We work on learning how anxiety operates in the brain and the body, and how anxiety makes you feel like everything is a crisis. We get really good at leaning into fears and worries, and changing how we think about it, which results in a changed relationship with fear. We challenge you to find the courage and grit to trust the process and step into uncertainty and discomfort.
The good news is, anxiety is treatable. You can get better. Let’s do it together!
Have another question?
We’d love to hear from you!
Mindspace Clinical Counseling
How Anxiety Therapy Can Improve Your Life
Because every person and situation is unique, we can’t guarantee specific results in a certain time. However, we can assure you that with commitment to the process, in time you may notice:
- A boost in your self-worth and confidence
- Deeper, more restful sleep
- A deeper connection with those around you
- Greater self-awareness and compassion
- Becoming more capable of managing anxiety triggers
- Being more engaged, alive and present in the moment
- A renewed energy and drive to pursue your passions
- A feeling of calm and inner peace
We help you demote anxiety to something more manageable.
Get In Touch
We Make Getting Started Easy
If you’re a new client, please book a free discovery call before your first appointment. Click the button below to book directly online. You can also call or submit an inquiry via our contact form and we will book you in.
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Mindspace Clinical Counseling
Helping you put anxiety in its place so you can live a purposeful, happy life!
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Find A Therapist