Women's Anxiety Treatment

While it’s normal to get nervous before a presentation, doctor’s appointment or parent-teacher conference, some women experience nearly constant feelings of irritability, tension, and edginess. You may have an anxiety disorder if you have trouble relaxing and letting go of your worries.

This disorder can dominate your life, occupying many of your waking thoughts. It can even disrupt your sleep in the form of upsetting nightmares and overnight panic attacks. No matter how long you’ve dealt with problems like these, you should know that women’s anxiety treatment can help you learn to manage your symptoms and improve your overall quality of life.

Anxiety Symptoms

While millions of people worldwide struggle with worry, women are more likely to develop anxiety disorders than men. A health professional can diagnose you with a disorder if symptoms like these become severe enough to interfere with your ability to perform daily tasks.

• Frequent panic attacks, which could signify a panic disorder
• Experiencing a sense of impending doom or terror when there is no obvious threat present
• Generally being jumpy, shaky or startling easily
• Racing thoughts that cause you to have trouble concentrating
• Restricting your activities to avoid people, places or situations that trigger anxiety
• Insomnia and nightmares
• Having an upset stomach
• Holding muscle tension in areas like your back, neck and shoulders

Many people occasionally experience some of these symptoms – for example, having a disturbing nightmare does not necessarily mean you have an anxiety disorder. However, if they happen to you regularly or even daily, you should have a conversation with a treatment provider.

“Why Am I So Anxious All the Time?”

Women with anxiety disorders may find they cannot easily calm down or self-soothe, which can make their feelings of irrational fear spiral out of control. Anxious people have elevated levels of a stress hormone called cortisol. While this hormone is responsible for several essential functions throughout your body, it is relevant to anxiety because it helps regulate your natural fight-or-flight response.

After the perceived threat passes, cortisol levels should return to a baseline level. But people with anxiety are almost always in fight-or-flight mode. Cortisol continuously floods your body, which can worsen anxiety and ultimately cause a host of other severe health issues, including digestive disorders, immunodeficiency, cardiovascular disease, addiction and diabetes.

Evidence-Based Ways to Treat Anxiety

Though anxiety disorders are not curable, you can learn to manage them with a mental health treatment program customized to your specific needs. At Canyon Crossing, our clinical modalities for addressing mental health disorders include eye movement desensitization and reprocessing and programming designed to help our clients overcome a dual diagnosis of a substance use disorder and a simultaneously occurring mental health challenge. We also offer long-term, standalone treatment for anxiety.

We know women may face unique obstacles that can contribute to anxiety disorders, including societal expectations to put other people’s needs first. That’s why we have tailored our programs and therapies to address women’s specific concerns in a single-gender environment that offers plenty of non-judgmental support. Whether you need dual-diagnosis treatment or a stand-alone plan to address an anxiety disorder, help is only one phone call away.