Generalized Anxiety Therapy in Alpharetta, GA
When your worry has a worry about the worry.
(okay, but what if the backup plan needs a backup plan?)
It's not one big fear. It's everything, a little bit, all the time. Work, money, your kids, your health, the weird noise the car made, the email you sent at 4:52. You solve one worry and another one steps up to the mic.
From the outside, you probably look organized. Prepared. The person who remembers everything. On the inside, your shoulders have been up by your ears since roughly 2019.
I treat generalized anxiety with CBT that targets worry and uncertainty directly. It fits under my broader anxiety therapy work. If the worry is mostly about getting things perfect, see perfectionism therapy. If it spills into replaying conversations, see overthinking therapy.
What it looks like
Your brain is running every tab at once.
- Your mind jumps to the worst version of an ordinary situation, fast.
- Your jaw, neck or stomach stays tight even on a 'good' day.
- You plan for every possible outcome, and it still doesn't feel like enough.
- Falling asleep means lying there listing tomorrow's what-ifs.
- You ask for reassurance or research things until you feel settled. Briefly.
- People tell you to 'just relax,' and you'd love to. You don't know how.
How CBT helps with worry
Getting okay with not knowing.
(certainty is not on the menu. calm still can be.)
Worry feels productive. It feels like you're protecting yourself and everyone around you. And some of it is useful. But generalized anxiety tends to run on a hidden rule: if I think about it enough, I'll be ready. The trouble is that "enough" never arrives.
CBT helps you tell the difference between problem-solving and looping. Problem-solving ends in an action. Looping ends in more questions. We practice catching the loop early and stepping out of it.
A big part of the work is building tolerance for uncertainty. Not by arguing yourself into feeling sure, but by practicing small doses of not-sure on purpose: sending the email without rereading it, leaving part of the plan unplanned, letting a question go unanswered for a day. You find out that you can handle more than anxiety says.
We also work with the body. Worry lives in tight shoulders and a clenched stomach, so you'll learn practical ways to notice tension and bring it down, not as a way to avoid anxiety, but so it doesn't run the whole day.
Sessions are practical. You leave each one with something specific to try. This is not a place to just vent about the worries, though you're welcome to tell me about them.
What you'll actually do
Tools you'll actually use on a Tuesday.
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01
Sort the worries
Learn to separate worries you can act on today from the ones that are just what-ifs, and handle each differently.
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02
Practice uncertainty
Small, specific experiments each week where you leave something unchecked or unplanned and see what happens.
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03
Settle the body
Simple ways to notice tension and bring it down that fit into a real, busy day.
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04
Cut the reassurance
Gradually trim the researching, asking and double-checking that keeps the worry fed.
Common questions
Before you book.
- Isn't some worry useful?
- Yes. Worry that leads to a plan you actually act on is useful. The trouble is worry that loops without ending, where you plan and replan and still don't feel settled.
- Will I have to stop planning?
- No. We keep the planning that helps and trim the planning that is really just a way to chase certainty. You decide where that line is.
- What does a session look like?
- We look at a specific worry from your week, notice what you did with it, and practice a CBT skill. You leave with a small assignment to try before next time.
- What does it cost?
- Individual sessions are $185 for 50 minutes. I'm private pay and provide a superbill you can submit for possible out-of-network reimbursement. HSA and FSA accepted.
Ready when you are.
A free 15-minute call. You tell me what's going on. I tell you honestly whether I'm the right fit.