Suffering From Panic and Anxiety? How Quickly Can You See Results With Therapy?

Suffering From Panic and Anxiety? How Quickly Can You See Results With Therapy?

Panic and anxiety are debilitating conditions that, if left unchecked, greatly impact your life.

Inevitably, it becomes harder to do the things you want to do, because you are more stressed and unfocused.

While therapy can help resolve your panic and anxiety so that you can get back to your life, you may wonder how patiently you will have to wait for results.

Let us explore that matter.

The Different Types of Anxiety

Anxiety can be broken down into three broad categories. These are mild, moderate, and severe. For example:

• Mild anxiety – Caused by something specific and lasts for a short amount of time. It is still possible to do daily activities, and you are still able to stay in control.
• Moderate anxiety – Anxiety happens more frequently in your life. You have a general feeling of anxiety that never really goes away. Thus, you tend to avoid situations, even if you must deal with them.
• Severe anxiety – Makes it very hard to function daily. You find it very hard to hold a job or have meaningful relationships.

How your anxiety is classified is an important factor towards getting the necessary treatment you need. That is why it is important to see a therapist to better understand where you stand and where to begin.

Factors That Influence Treatment

There are other factors to consider when seeking out therapy for panic and anxiety treatment. One factor is how long you have been experiencing symptoms. If it has been for an extended period of time, it may take longer to work through the therapy process.

Another consideration is what kind of change you are seeking. Do you want to work on an individual issue or completely change how you live? The former will most likely take a shorter amount of time than the latter, which could take many sessions.

Additionally, it is also important to consider your level of confidence. Do you believe that you are capable of controlling your anxiety? Are you confident that therapy will be helpful? These and other factors play a big role in how quickly you see results from therapy.

Time Frame for Panic and Anxiety Therapy

The time frame for treatment will vary given the factors listed above. However, in the case of mild anxiety, it is possible to see results within three sessions. To see a full resolution of symptoms, these time frames are a good estimate:

• Mild: 3-12 sessions
• Moderate: 6-24 sessions
• Severe: At least 24+ sessions

As you can see, the greater the severity of panic and anxiety issues, the longer the process may need to be for treatment. That’s why, when you do see a therapist, your time together needs to be as productive as possible.

How to Treat Panic and Anxiety Disorders

One way a therapist may treat these problems is through cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). The advantage of CBT is that it combines discussion with action.

The way it works is that you see a therapist and talk about your anxiety issues. This is done in a focused and structured way so that the session is productive and doesn’t veer off track.

In subsequent sessions, you learn about healthy coping skills to manage your anxiety. Additionally, outside of session, you practice assignments to test those skills. During each consecutive session, you process with the therapist what happened and what to do differently next time.

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It would be an enormous relief if all it took to be rid of panic and anxiety was waving a magic wand.

However, the truth is that it takes dedicated work and time. How long depends on several factors. These include your thoughts and beliefs surrounding therapy and your own abilities, as well as how long you have had panic and anxiety problems.

Be assured, though, that through tools such as CBT, you can find the relief you want and become anxiety-free.