Anxiety can feel very different from one person to another.
For some people, it appears in response to a specific situation. For others, it can arise seemingly out of nowhere. It may show up as racing thoughts, physical tension, a feeling of danger, difficulty breathing, a tightness in the chest, a restless body or an overwhelming internal dialogue.
And sometimes, the most difficult part is not understanding that you are anxious.
It is understanding why.
You may find yourself thinking:
“Why am I feeling this way?”
“I know there is no real danger, so why can't I calm down?”
“Why does this keep happening?”
Understanding anxiety is often the first step towards changing your relationship with it.
Anxiety is not the same for everyone
There is no single experience of anxiety.
The way anxiety manifests itself can depend on your history, your personality, your nervous system, your experiences and the beliefs you have developed over time.
For some people, anxiety is predominantly cognitive: thoughts become repetitive, catastrophic or difficult to stop.
For others, it is primarily physical: tension, a racing heart, stomach discomfort, restlessness or a sense of being constantly on alert.
It can also be strongly connected to particular environments, relationships or situations.
And sometimes, there doesn't appear to be an obvious trigger at all.
This is why I don't approach anxiety with a single technique or a standard formula.
The first step is to understand your anxiety.
Looking beneath the anxiety
In our work together, we explore what may be underneath the anxiety rather than focusing only on the symptom itself.
We may look at:
the situations in which anxiety appears
whether there is a specific trigger or whether it arises unexpectedly
the thoughts that accompany it
your internal narrative
underlying beliefs
limiting beliefs and assumptions
emotional patterns
previous experiences that may still influence your responses
the way your body experiences and expresses anxiety
The goal is to begin creating a clearer picture of how your anxiety works.
Because the more clearly we understand the pattern, the more effectively we can work with it.
How do you actually experience anxiety?
An important part of the work is becoming more aware of how anxiety is experienced through your senses and your body.
Does it begin with a thought?
Does your body react before you consciously realise that you are anxious?
Do you notice a particular sensation?
Is it connected to sound, touch, your surroundings or a particular type of internal dialogue?
Does a certain situation immediately trigger a response?
Or does the feeling sometimes appear without an obvious reason?
Learning to recognise these patterns can help you move from simply experiencing anxiety to understanding it.
And awareness creates possibilities for change.
Working with the internal narrative
The way we speak to ourselves can have a significant influence on how we experience anxiety.
Sometimes the internal narrative is so automatic that we don't even realise it is there.
A thought may immediately lead to another thought, which creates an emotional response, which then reinforces the original fear.
Part of our work can therefore involve becoming more conscious of this internal narrative and examining the beliefs behind it.
Not every anxious thought is a fact.
And learning to distinguish between what you are thinking, what you are feeling and what is actually happening can be an important step in changing your relationship with anxiety.
Finding the right tools for you
Once we have a clearer understanding of your anxiety and the patterns behind it, we can begin identifying tools that are adapted specifically to you.
There is no point giving everyone the same technique if everyone experiences anxiety differently.
The tools may focus on grounding, awareness, regulation, the body, attention, thoughts or the way you respond to a triggering situation.
The objective is not to make anxiety disappear instantly.
It is to develop the ability to recognise what is happening, reconnect with yourself and respond differently.
Over time, these tools can give you a greater sense of stability and confidence when anxiety arises.
From reacting to responding
Anxiety can make you feel as though something is happening to you.
The heart races.
The thoughts accelerate.
The body becomes tense.
You react before you have had the opportunity to understand what is happening.
Our work aims to create more space between the trigger and the response.
To move from reacting automatically to responding consciously.
This doesn't mean that you will never experience anxiety again.
It means that anxiety no longer has to completely dictate what you do.
Moving forward with greater awareness
The goal of anxiety therapy is not simply to teach you how to calm down.
It is to understand what your anxiety is communicating, where it comes from and what maintains it, and then develop tools that allow you to approach it differently.
Together, we work towards greater awareness, greater regulation and greater freedom in the way you respond to yourself and to the world around you.
Because the objective is not to eliminate every uncomfortable feeling.
It is to feel more capable of meeting those feelings without being controlled by them.
Anxiety Therapy in Brussels
If anxiety is affecting your relationships, work, sleep, confidence or everyday life, therapy can provide a space to understand what is happening beneath the surface.
My approach is integrative and personalised. Depending on your needs, our work may draw on Brief Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), emotional processing and nervous system regulation.
Rather than applying the same technique to everyone, I take the time to understand how anxiety specifically works for you and identify tools that fit your individual experience.
I offer sessions in English, French and Spanish, in Brussels and online.
If you would like to better understand your anxiety and develop practical tools to approach it differently, you can contact me to discuss your situation.
Chantal Feuerlein
Integrative Therapist & Life Coach
Brussels | Online
English • French • Spanish