Shawna Roberts, Psy.D.

Anxiety Relief is Available

Anxiety can often interfere with our relationships with others and ourselves. It can commonly interfere with our ability to perform to our optimal level of functioning. My goal is to help children and adults relate to anxiety in a healthy way. Anxiety can be so helpful to inform our decisions. It becomes a struggle when we misinterpret cues and information our body is giving us.

Anxiety can interfere with parenting abilities, work, school, or sport performance. Learning strategies can help you excel in these areas of your life. I have also worked with many people who have anxiety in their intimate relationships that is creating distance rather than fostering closeness. In any form that anxiety reveals itself, there are many strategies to help you use it in a healthy way.

One strategy is through the use of Biofeedback. Biofeedback continues to emerge as a scientifically based treatment for many conditions. Biofeedback is a therapeutic tool which provides physiological information in order to help individuals improve on self-regulation. During stress, blood vessels become constricted and pass less warm blood. Thermal biofeedback training helps people work through the stress response effectively which is measurable as an increase in skin temperature. We also can measure heart rhythm patterns in real time to inform ways to decrease stress in your life.

Another form of treatment is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). EMDR encourages healing of traumatic memories that have not been processed properly. EMDR is a structured way to offer relief in order to process memories properly and develop adaptive changes in thinking.

Panic Attacks

If you feel faint or dizzy for no apparent reason, experience heart palpitations, or feel that you are losing touch with the world around you, you may be having a panic attack. Other signs and symptoms may include pains in different parts of your body, feeling like you are going "crazy" or that you are becoming seriously ill. Panic attacks are frightening and can lead you to worry more. Be assured, however, that they are harmless and will pass.

Activities some people find helpful:

Deep breathing.

Visualizing something pleasant.

Talking with a friend.

Distracting oneself
(e.g. watch a relaxing movie).

Reducing your demands
(e.g. clean the house).

Taking time for yourself
(e.g. take a warm bath).

Exercising
(e.g. walk around the block).

It is important for you to listen to the signs that your body is giving you. Your body is telling you to do something different in honor of your health and well-being. If you have tried these activities and you are not finding relief then please contact me for further help.

More information coming soon regarding Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Postpartum Depression and Anxiety, and Separation Anxiety.

Trauma Recovery

If you or someone you know has suffered a trauma, the following symptoms may be experienced: headaches, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, insomnia, nightmares, reoccurring intrusive memories of the event, feeling anxious, easily frightened, and many other symptoms. There are many ways that these symptoms can be treated to minimize the impact of the trauma. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) can be helpful in treating traumatic memories. EMDR therapy is used to help individuals to process these memories properly and develop adaptive changes in thinking.

Obsessive Compulsive Personality (or Type A Personality or Perfectionistic Personality)

A pervasive pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control. Often people struggling with this disorder are preoccupied with details, rules, lists, organization, or schedules. Perfectionism can interfere with task completion. Often times people struggling in this way are devoted to work to the exclusion of relationships, often feeling that she/he can not delegate work duties to others for fear that it will not be done perfectly. Sometimes people are unable to discard worn-out or worthless objects. People may be described by others as rigid on certain topics and stubborn. This condition can only be diagnosed by a qualified professional so please call for further evaluation if this fits you or someone you love.