Anxiety Therapy in Boulder and Longmont
Anxiety can prevent living the life you dream of…
You find yourself holding back, frozen, stalled, stuck. Or, pushing forward to do things that scare you but feeling stressed the whole time. Your mind is loud, racing thoughts, analyzing the steps, and you are tired of this. You know what you want in life. You want to meet those interesting people, move forward in your career, take the risk with the presentation, apply for school, try that interesting hobby, travel more, perhaps even date, or finally be able to relax with less worry.
Anxiety can show up in many different ways:
Overactive brain (thoughts racing, perfectionism, over-thinking, questioning or second guessing)
Muscle Tension (tight jaw, tight shoulders, stomach aches or knots for example)
Difficulty trusting your intuition or “gut feeling” (not knowing what this is or can’t find it)
Self-critical thoughts and beating yourself up
Fear of sharing your feelings or needs, or knowing if it is okay to share
Overwork or over-performing trying to manage the anxiety
Avoiding activities or people
Over cautious or protective, fearing the worst will happen
Drinking a little too much to try and “be chill”
Anxiety is on the rise in modern society…you are not alone.
Anxiety can be caused by a variety of factors. Some people are born with anxious tendencies or inherit these traits from family behaviors or beliefs. Modern society also often expects a pace and performance that may feel or be unmanageable for you. Other times, stressful or frightening experiences can leave people anxious or worried that something like this may occur again. Feeling out of control (or being out of control) can feel overwhelming, increasing anxiety and stress. Other times, there is a cumulation of events, life stressors, identity explorations, relationship dynamics, changes in society, expectations, life changes, grief/loss, or health changes that all add up…you may not know what to do or who to turn to for support. Without support, it can even culminate in panic attacks, health concerns, and difficulty enjoying life.
Symptoms of anxiety can include: physical tension, gastrointestinal issues, difficulty falling or staying asleep, inability to relax even when having “down time”, negative or self-critical thoughts, self-consciousness, avoidance of people/places/things that make you anxious, playing out worst case scenarios in your head, “freezing up” and not being able to speak, ruminating thoughts about past interactions, perfectionism, difficulty meeting new people, performance fears, and chronic life worries (even if things seem relatively okay).
Understanding your anxious feelings…
Most of the time, people see their anxiety as a problem to get rid of. They wish it would just “go away” and stop getting in the way of their goals or life. This is understandable. Unfortunately, many of the things people do to try and find relief from anxiety make it worse, such as: avoiding anxiety provoking situations, working harder or longer (“I will feel relief when I finish this”), researching frightening information or imagining worst case scenarios, trying to control their emotions or suppress them, hiding their anxiety from others, self-medicating with alcohol or substances that increase anxiety, not eating due to stomach aches, and pushing through.
Rarely do we consider that our anxiety might be pointing us to a deeper understanding of ourselves, our world, our relationships, our past, and our dreams. “Anxiety”, much like “stress” is often the tip of the iceberg. There are often times multiple factors (both within and outside of ourselves) that contribute. One of these factors can be a cumulation of many different emotions that have built up over time. When we haven’t had time to process, or even know how to feel our emotions fully, it can manifest as one strong experience that we call anxiety. Taking time, with support, to better understand the pieces, messages, influences, truths, emotions, etc that make up the anxiety iceberg can help us feel more settled, in control, and in tune with ourselves. This can lead to greater feelings of confidence and understanding. Working with our anxiety, with the right kind of support, can be powerful.
Specialized counseling to address anxiety can be empowering…
Therapy specialized in addressing or working with anxiety can make all of the difference. It can help you understand the factors that contribute to your unique anxiety, building confidence in yourself, finding the skills that support you, uncovering any wisdom your anxiety may be pointing you to, understanding your nervous system functioning, and practicing the methods that best serve you in finding relief & in creating the life you dream of. An integrative approach to anxiety, one that addresses the mind, body, and external factors that contribute to your experience, is often more helpful than a single set of skills. Taking the time to fully explore your unique process, your dreams, your goals, and your history is part of this holistic process. This helps the therapist (and you) target types of therapies that will best support you. Integrative approaches to anxiety treatment pull from several modalities, including: CBT/DBT (cognitive behavioral and/or dialectical behavioral therapy), somatic therapies (Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, EMDR Therapies), art therapy, parts work, traditional talk therapy, mindfulness based approaches, neurobiological awareness, and transpersonal elements when useful. These therapies, and the relationship with a skilled therapist, can help you unpack the pieces, find your inner wisdom, build confidence with the skills, know how to work with big emotions, and support action steps for the future. They can also support you in addressing any of the changes in life that you may want to make to better serve you— or to make the choices that are best for you within the life you have. Having a guide, coach, cheerleader, and skillful supporter can make a world of difference.
Our approach to addressing anxiety goes beyond a few coping skills…helping you find your center and confidence.
While learning a few breathing techniques or thought reframes can be incredibly useful, they often put a bandaid over the deeper nuances occurring within you. We believe that addressing the whole of what is happening — down to the root — is more useful long-term.
Our approach gently supports you in meeting your anxiety, building the capacity to feel emotions, incorporating techniques that bolster your nervous system, unwinding unhelpful anxious tendencies, and discovering what your anxiety might be trying to tell you. Learning to befriend and work with this complex emotion allows you to uncover the gifts hidden within it. And, helps you to bring that inner knowledge into your everyday life.
Often, we fear what we don't understand or don't know how to work with. Once you understand the terrain of your anxiety, you can learn to navigate it with confidence.
Ways we work, including somatic, art, and experiential and relational therapies.
Healing anxiety isn't one-size-fits-all, and we don't treat it that way. Our therapists bring a rich, integrative toolkit to each session; blending somatic therapy, art therapy, relational therapy, and mindfulness-based approaches to meet you exactly where you are. Rather than defaulting to a single method, we thoughtfully weave together what your nervous system, your history, and your whole self are calling for.
At the heart of our work is a deep respect for the body. Through somatic therapy, we gently bring awareness to the sensations, tension patterns, and nervous system responses that often sit beneath anxiety. . . the tight chest, the churning stomach, the freeze that happens before a hard conversation. Your body holds valuable information, and we help you learn to listen to it with curiosity rather than fear. This body-centered approach allows us to work with anxiety at the level where it actually lives, not just manage it at the surface.
For those who find that words alone don't quite capture what they're carrying, art therapy offers a beautiful and often surprising doorway. Through image-making, color, and symbol, parts of your inner world that feel hard to articulate can begin to take shape. This isn't about making "good art,” it's about having another language available to you, one that can sometimes reach places that talking alone cannot.
Woven throughout everything we do is a relational, attuned presence. We believe the therapeutic relationship itself is healing. Our therapists show up as warm, grounded, and genuinely invested collaborators — not blank slates. Whether you're working through the roots of anxiety, learning to trust yourself more, or practicing new ways of being, you won't be doing it alone.
Mindfulness-based practices support all of this by building your capacity to pause, observe, and be present with what arises, without immediately reacting or shutting it down. Over time, this cultivates a steadier, more trusting relationship with your own inner experience.
All of our work is nervous system-informed and paced gently. We are not here to push you past your window of capacity. We're here to help you gradually expand it, so that life feels more navigable, more spacious, and more like your own.
You may have questions…
-
We hear this often, and it makes sense — not all therapy approaches anxiety the same way. Many people have tried talk therapy or coping skills and found some relief, but felt like something was still missing. Our work goes deeper than symptom management. By exploring the roots of your anxiety through the body, creative expression, and the therapeutic relationship itself, we often reach the parts that more traditional approaches don't touch. If you've been through therapy before, that experience isn't wasted — it's actually something we can build on together.
-
Description texNot at all — and you'd be surprised how often we hear that from people who end up loving it. Art therapy in our practice isn't about talent or making something beautiful. It's simply another way of exploring what's going on inside you. Sometimes an image, a color, or a shape can express something that words can't quite reach. It's always offered as an option, never a requirement, and we follow your lead on what feels useful and comfortable for you.t goes here
-
This is one of the most common questions to ask or wonder about, and it deserves an honest answer. It depends — on the nature and history of your anxiety, your goals, and what "better" means to you. Some people notice meaningful shifts within a few months; for others, deeper work unfolds over a longer period. What we can tell you is that we won't keep you in therapy longer than is useful, and we'll regularly check in with you about how things are feeling and where you want to go. Progress isn't always linear, but with the right support, it is possible.
We understand anxiety and how to work with it.
Anxiety is one of the most common concerns our clients bring to us. . . whether it's the primary focus of our work together or woven into another life challenge or transition. Over years of working with clients navigating anxiety in all its forms, we've developed a nuanced, multi-threaded approach that honors just how individual anxiety can be.
We explore five interconnected arenas: your mind and thought patterns, your body and nervous system, your emotional world, your relationships and confidence, and your life circumstances. Mapping these together allows us to understand your unique anxiety profile — what drives it, what sustains it, and what your nervous system most needs to begin finding relief. No two people's anxiety looks the same, and our approach reflects that.
From the very first session, we work collaboratively. You have choice at every step. What we explore, how we explore it, and the pace we move at. There is no agenda being imposed on you here. After getting a clearer picture of how your anxiety works — through conversation, a few gentle experiential practices like movement or nervous system exercises, or creative exploration with art — we'll talk through an initial approach together. This might draw from somatic therapy, art therapy, mindfulness-based practices, CBT, relational work, simple lifestyle shifts, or coordination with medical providers when helpful.
We move in digestible steps. Our work together may sometimes bring up uncomfortable feelings. That's often part of the process. But, it should never feel overwhelming. We are always paying attention to your pace and your capacity. Our goal is for you to leave each session feeling a little more capable, a little more connected to yourself, and genuinely proud of the work you are doing.
If you are looking for support with your anxiety, we are happy to help.
We are happy to connect with you for a free consultation or answer any further questions you may have. We are a small team of therapists who offer both in-person and online therapy sessions in Colorado, in-person sessions in Boulder and Longmont. Our team is relational, warm, down-to-earth, and have specialized training beyond talk therapy alone. To learn more about the team, feel free to check us out here. Or about our practice, here.
