Anxiety is one of the most common mental health conditions in the world. However, that doesn’t necessarily make it easy to deal with. People with anxiety have different symptoms and triggers, and learning how to navigate them can be overwhelming.
When left untreated, anxiety can feel like it takes over your entire life. It can impact your career, your relationships, and even the way you view yourself.
If there’s a silver lining to the condition, it’s that there are a variety of treatment and management options to help you get your anxious thoughts under control — including emotionally focused therapy (EFT).
Let’s take a closer look at how EFT can help to soothe your mind and fight back against anxiety. Understanding how it works can help you determine if it’s the option for you.
How Does EFT Work?
Emotionally focused therapy works by boosting your emotional awareness. It comes from a place of suggesting that your emotions are linked to your identity. A lack of emotional awareness can be harmful, and can cause you to think or behave in ways that might have lasting negative effects.
EFT will help you learn how to better understand your emotions, so it’s easier to regulate them. It’s a collaborative process that allows you to eventually accept your feelings. You’ll also understand how to better control them so they don’t overwhelm you or threaten to take over.
Perhaps most importantly, you’ll begin to understand why certain emotions occur. Knowing where they stem from can help you feel more in control and make emotional regulation easier.
Why EFT Helps with Anxiety
People experience different levels of severity when it comes to anxiety. But, whether you experience fear every day or certain things trigger you, anxious thoughts and feelings can make it seem like you’re losing control.
EFT can help you regain that control by helping you understand where those anxious emotions stem from. When you develop an understanding of what’s causing your anxiety, you can take active steps toward neutralizing those triggers.
Emotional Regulation and Functioning
When anxiety is in control, your quality of life suffers. Fear and worry can become so prominent that it feels nearly impossible to function. Unfortunately, that can create a vicious cycle. Your inability to regulate your emotions can make you feel more anxious. Functioning becomes more difficult and fear becomes more prominent.
Emotionally focused therapy can help you identify which emotions are helpful and which ones are harmful. Being able to recognize the differences will make it easier to regulate those emotions without letting the negative ones take over. Again, it helps you stay in control and keep anxiety from spiraling.
When you’re able to identify your anxiety in healthy ways, you’ll also be able to express it in healthier ways. That can help with symptom management and make you feel more secure in your life and your relationships. That kind of coping can lead to a positive cycle. The more in-tune you are with your emotions, the easier it will be to handle them, until fear becomes a very small voice.
Other Benefits of EFT
Emotionally focused therapy is a research-backed method that has been used to treat a variety of mental health issues. It can help you make better sense of your emotions and increase your depth in everyday experiences.
However, it’s important to note that EFT isn’t for everyone. You’ll get the most out of it if you recognize that you’re dealing with a problem and you’re open to change.
If you’re struggling with anxiety and you’re ready to try something different, EFT might be the solution. Feel free to contact me for more information about this effective therapy and how it can help.