How Long Does Anxiety Therapy Take in Salt Lake City, Utah?
Many of the women I work with in Salt Lake City, Utah, are high-achieving, capable, and used to pushing themselves to handle things on their own. On the outside, they often look like they have everything together, but internally, they’re dealing with constant worry, overthinking, and pressure that rarely shuts off. These strengths of being driven, responsible, and hardworking can absolutely support the therapy process, but they can also shape expectations about how quickly anxiety “should” improve. If you're considering starting anxiety therapy in Salt Lake City, Utah, it’s completely normal to wonder how long the process will take and what that timeline might look like for you.
One of the challenges of working with women with anxiety is the timeline they expect to get results and be done with therapy. I tell my clients to plan on a year of weekly therapy before considering ending it or tapering down sessions. Between you and I, a year is even know that long of a time, and most people need even longer.
Maple Canyon Therapy’s approach to anxiety therapy
As a therapist, I want my clients to feel better as quickly as possible. I feel that the weight on my shoulders is sometimes heavier than I should, but that’s because I want it so badly for you. I have been in that position, and I get how horrible it feels to be scared, nervous, and anxious. More than I want fast results for my clients, I want you to feel better long term. I want you to be equipped with the skills to manage your anxiety long-term, and unfortunately for both of us, that is not a fast process. If you want relief from anxiety, plan on a year or more of therapy.
The challenges my clients face with anxiety treatment
You might look at that one-year timeline for anxiety treatment and think, “I bet I could do it in four months.” I’m begging you not to do that. It’s not realistic and honestly unfair to you and your therapist. The work that I do with clients involves going for the roots of their anxiety, and when you end treatment early because you feel like you should be done, it can cause more harm than good. Hopefully, you wouldn’t end a medical procedure before getting stitched back up, so please don’t end anxiety counseling before it’s through. I realize therapy is an investment. Again, I’ve been there and know it’s not an easy sacrifice, but the return on an investment will change your life forever if you go through all the steps. There are no shortcuts to healing trauma, anxiety, or eating disorders. Please make sure this is something feasible for you before you begin counseling. Allow yourself to work through the process without ending early. I understand that clients start feeling better because they have a few more skills than they did before, but sadly they have to return as a result.
How do I know I am done with anxiety therapy?
Regardless of the timeline, ending anxiety treatment should be planned and talked about with your therapist. Feeling good for one week isn’t a good approach to ending treatment. Being able to consistently manage anxiety and stressors, along with having worked through past negative experiences and improved your beliefs about yourself, are all important goals to focus on before ending treatment. I like to discuss with my clients a date we can work toward to taper down on therapy session frequency. In that process, we will chat about goals you have achieved and some that you would like to continue to work on.
Start Anxiety Therapy in Salt Lake City, Utah
If you struggle with anxiety, you don’t have to struggle alone. If you are like the women I work with, you’ve tried really hard to do it on your own. You don’t have to white-knuckle it through life. Maple Canyon Therapy has an anxiety therapist who can help. If you haven’t worked with a therapist before, you might be surprised at how relieved you can feel from your anxiety by doing so. To begin anxiety treatment, follow these steps:
Meet with a therapist for anxiety
Begin anxiety counseling
Online Therapy in Utah
I work with many women in Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as women throughout the state through online therapy in Utah. This means that wherever you are in Utah, I can work with you. I often work with clients in Logan, Salt Lake City, and St. George, Utah.
More Therapy Services for Women in Salt Lake City, Utah
Anxiety therapy isn’t the only mental health service provided. Other mental health services provided by Maple Canyon Therapy include eating disorder therapy, birth trauma therapy, body image therapy, trauma therapy, and binge eating disorder treatment in Utah.
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About the Author
Ashlee Hunt is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and owner of Maple Canyon Therapy Services. Ashlee holds two bachelor’s degrees from Southern Utah University, including a bachelor's in Psychology and a Bachelor's in Family Life and Human Development. Ashlee completed her master of Social Work at Utah State University. Ashlee specializes in treating women with symptoms of anxiety, including LDS women with anxiety, high-functioning anxiety, and perfectionism. She also utilizes an EMDR approach to help clients manage symptoms of anxiety.