Anxiety, Panic & Worry

When your mind and body are trying to keep you safe

Anxiety, worry and panic are closely related, but they can feel quite different.

Anxiety

Anxiety is a sense of unease, fear or anticipation that something might go wrong. You might feel tense, on edge, restless or unable to relax even when you can't identify exactly what you're afraid of.

Sometimes anxiety shows up as needing control, avoiding situations, seeking reassurance or constantly preparing for what might happen.

Worry

Worry tends to happen in our thoughts.

What if something goes wrong?
What if I've made the wrong decision?
What if they're upset with me?

Your mind may analyse, replay and predict in an attempt to find certainty. In this way, worry can become a protective strategy - a part of you trying to make sure you're prepared.

Panic

Panic is the body's alarm system becoming intensely activated.

You may experience a racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, shaking, chest tightness or an overwhelming feeling that something terrible is happening.

After experiencing panic, you may also become afraid of the sensations themselves — What if it happens again? — which can lead to avoidance or constantly monitoring your body.

Why does it keep happening?

Anxiety isn't always just about what is happening now.

Our experiences can teach us what we need to watch for, avoid or control. A part of you may have learned that staying alert, thinking ahead, pleasing others or preparing for every possibility helps keep you safe.

Even when you logically know you're okay, that protective part may still respond as though there is something to worry about.

But what about anxiety strategies?

Breathing exercises, grounding, mindfulness and challenging anxious thoughts can be useful. They can help settle your nervous system and give you more space when anxiety feels overwhelming.

But strategies don't always address why the anxiety keeps returning.

Sometimes deeper work is needed to understand what is driving the fear, what the anxiety is protecting you from, and where these responses began.

How I can help

Therapy can help you develop practical ways to manage anxiety, while also understanding what may be driving it underneath.

Together, we can explore your triggers, protective patterns, and the beliefs or past experiences that may be keeping the anxiety going.

Rather than fighting the anxious part of you, we can become curious about it:

What is it afraid would happen if it stopped worrying?

The aim isn't to never feel anxious again. It's to understand your anxiety, feel less controlled by it, and have more choice in how you respond.

Interested in a different way of understanding anxiety?

Anxiety is often understood as something to manage or reduce. In this article, I explore a different lens — looking at what anxiety may be communicating and what might be happening underneath it. Read Why am I so anxious? Looking beyond the symptoms