What can a Psychologist help you with?

Anxiety and panic

Anxiety disorders affect one in four Australians at some stage in their life. There are various types of anxiety disorder that present in different ways though all can impact daily activities of the individual.

People with anxiety disorders often feel unable to stop worrying about things that may seem insignificant. Situations may be interpreted as far worse than reality. This understandably interferes with your ability to concentrate, can disrupt work, relationships and enjoyment of life.

Symptoms may include some or all of the following:

  • Persistent and excessive worry

  • Feelings of powerlessness

  • Sense of impending doom

  • Racing thoughts, difficulty thinking

  • Difficulty with concentration and memory

  • Avoiding situations that may trigger anxiety

  • Increased heart rate

  • Shortness of breath

  • Feeling tired or weak

  • Dizziness

  • Stomach or chest pain

  • Muscle tension and headaches

  • Changes in sleep

 

Panic attacks commonly but not always accompany anxiety. Panic disorder is the condition of frequent panic attacks that affect individuals’ lives. Symptoms may include:

  • Dizziness or faintness
  • Difficulty breathing; short, shallow breathing
  • Chest pain
  • Hot or cold sweats
  • Trembling
 

Grief and loss

Grief is most commonly associated to the death of a loved one, though any type of significant loss can also lead to feelings of grief:

  • Death of a loved one

  • Divorce or separation

  • Work changes

  • Diagnosis of chronic illness

  • Loss of good health following injury or disability

  • Miscarriage or infertility

  • Having a child with a disability, physical or mental illness

  • Moving away or separation from family or friends

  • “empty nesting”

Grief has no set pattern or “stages”. There is no right or wrong way to grieve, it is a natural that affects everyone differently and for most people, will become less pervasive and intense with time, though it may be helpful to seek support during this period of bereavement.

Some common reactions might include:

  • Feeling sad or down; frequent crying
  • Shock, denial, numbness
  • Stress, anxiety, confusion, exhaustion
  • Anger, guilt, shame or even relief
  • Loneliness, isolation and withdrawal
  • Physical health problems e.g. headaches, changes in sleeping or eating
  • Difficulty concentrating

Long-term or overwhelming grief may interfere with your way of life, work, relationship and general enjoyment of activities. If this is occurring, it is important to reach out for help.

Stress

Stress is an unavoidable part of life and can be useful in motivating and organising us to achieve important goals. However, when a person feels unable to effectively cope with stressful situations, this can be overwhelming and can cause extreme distress and may even lead to other mental health concerns such as depression and anxiety.

Signs that you may require professional support in managing stress may include:

  • Lack of motivation

  • Insomnia or over-sleeping

  • Moodiness

  • Headaches

  • Lack of concentration

  • Feelings of overwhelm or anxiety

  • Reliance on alcohol or other substances to cope

  • Increase in eating, drinking or other nervous habits

  • Feeling unable to cope with demands or responsibilities

Body image and eating disorder

Body dissatisfaction is predominantly an internal experience in which an individual holds negative thoughts and feelings towards their own body. Certain external factors (relationships, media and advertising) can also contribute to the developing of poor body image.

Approximately 50% of preadolescent girls and 30% of preadolescent boys and 60% of adult women and 40% of adult men have a negative body image. This is often seen as a symptom of an eating disorder, though not everyone with an eating disorder has problematic body image and not everyone with a problematic body image will develop an eating disorder.

Eating disorders occur amid a complexity of personal, genetic and environmental factors of which negative body image is only sometimes a contributor. Patients suffering anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa often disproportionately value body shape and weight in determining self-worth. This encourages behaviour that attempts to control and manage weight by restricting dietary intake, purging perceived excess or over-exercise.

Other types of eating disorder include binge eating and other-specified. These are more common presentations of disordered eating and eating attitudes, however often go unrecognised and unaddressed while continuing to cause significant distress for sufferers.

Trauma and abuse

Childhood abuse and adversity can have far-reaching implications that may continue well into adulthood. Childhood abuse may include physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. It may occur once or multiple times over many years. Every case is a violation of the most basic of human rights and may leave victims feeling stigmatised and shameful. Victims of child abuse have a higher risk than the general population for experiencing other psychological and social difficulties such as:

  • Depression and anxiety

  • Low self-esteem

  • Substance abuse

  • Relationship difficulties

  • Susceptibility to post-traumatic stress symptoms

 

Other distressing or life-threatening events can result in continued disturbance and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD):

 

Physical

  • Increased alertness to risk with high reactivity

  • Fatigue

  • Muscle tension, aches, pains

  • Sleep disruption

Cognitive

  • Intrusive memories, nightmares or “flashbacks” of the traumatic event

  • Impaired memory and concentration

Emotional

  • Fear, anxiety and panic

  • Detachment and numbness

  • Guilt

  • Anger

  • Irritability

Behavioural

  • Avoiding things that may remind of the event

  • Social withdrawal and isolation

  • Loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities

 

Trauma focused psychological interventions assist in building understanding of experiences, stress management strategies and techniques to help individuals cope with distressing situations and memories.

 

Pain

When pain persists beyond three months and longer than the normal expected time frames for healing from a specific injury, it is considered to be chronic.

Chronic pain any be mild or severe and can take the form of nerve pain, pain from bones, muscles and joints, as well as chronic illness pain. Sometimes pain can arise without any known physical trigger.

Chronic pain can make it difficult to work, maintain self-care activities and participate in things that you enjoy. Over 50% of people who suffer from chronic pain also experience anxiety and/or depression. They often experience feelings of hopelessness, frustration, low self-esteem and anger. In this way, chronic pain can have a debilitating impact both physically and emotionally.

Pain management with a psychologist is aimed at increasing understanding of individual pain patterns and triggers and practically managing these. Pacing, stress reduction and relaxation techniques are also useful tools in enabling individuals to engage with life in meaningful ways despite consistent pain.

Substance use

Substance use refers to the use of drugs or alcohol and includes substances such as cigarettes, illegal and prescription drugs, inhalants and other solvents. In moderate consumption, substance use may be considered socially or culturally acceptable though are liable to become problematic if used to excess. Substance use becomes a problem when it causes harm to the user or those around them. Problematic use of substances is commonly associated with:

  • Financial burden

  • Impact on relationship, work, education or home responsibilities

  • Physical and psychological health complications

  • Social isolation

  • Feeling dependent on the substance to get through everyday life or specific situations

  • Organising activities around substance use

  • Requiring higher volumes of the substance to elicit the same effect

  • Feeling unwell or mood alteration without the substance

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