Anxiety

At some point, everyone experiences fear or anxiety. It might be fear of illness, a breakup, or starting over in a new place.

Anxiety can also take the form of unease, for example, before giving a speech, doing a skydive, or leaving your child at daycare for the first time.

However, when you have anxiety, these worries persist—sometimes without pause. They can intensify, and you may suddenly find yourself worrying about more things than you did yesterday.

Most people with anxiety share common tendencies, such as:

- Excessive worrying

- Constantly monitoring how they feel

- Overanalyzing emotions and surroundings

- Avoiding feared situations

- Trying to reshape their thoughts

- Overplanning every detail

- Seeking relief through external means, like alcohol or others’ reassurance

Additionally, people with anxiety often believe:

- They cannot control their worries.

- Worrying is necessary to stay on top of life and daily tasks.

- Worry and anxiety can be harmful, potentially leading to physical illnesses like heart attacks or psychological conditions like psychosis.​

The symptoms of anxiety vary depending on the type of anxiety but generally fall into three categories:

1. Emotional symptoms – fear, nervousness, embarrassment

2. Physical symptoms – rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, trembling hands, blushing, nausea

3. Cognitive symptoms – thoughts like “Is my heart beating weirdly? Am I having a heart attack?”, “What if I stammer when introducing myself?”, or “I need to watch Netflix to stop overthinking.”

There are several theories about how anxiety develops.

In the past, anxiety was thought to stem from unresolved trauma and bad experiences, particularly from childhood or youth. The belief was that these experiences built up over time until they overwhelmed the mind, resulting in conditions like anxiety.

However, newer research shows that the mind works more like a sieve, capable of letting go of bad experiences—if you allow yourself to stop dwelling on them.

If, however, you continuously process, discuss, or worry about these experiences, you increase the risk of developing anxiety.

Another theory focuses on external pressures, such as a demanding job or emotional conflicts with family or colleagues. However, research suggests that anxiety is less about external stress and more about how we manage our thoughts and worries.

Those who dwell excessively on worries are more likely to develop anxiety. Conversely, those who can let their thoughts pass are less prone to anxiety.

There is effective psychological help for treating anxiety, including generalized anxiety, and metacognitive therapy has shown excellent results.

The goal of metacognitive therapy is to understand how ingrained habits and beliefs contribute to anxiety.

For example, if you habitually spend hours worrying every day because you believe worrying helps you stay in control, you end up trapped in a negative spiral. It’s like digging a hole to find a way out—only to dig yourself deeper.

The focus of our anxiety treatment is to reduce the amount of rumination, worry, and self-monitoring. This helps alleviate anxiety symptoms and restores your quality of life.

A typical course of metacognitive therapy for anxiety consists of 6–12 sessions, either in group therapy or one-on-one.

If you’re interested in learning more about breaking free from anxiety or would like help putting your feelings into words, please feel free to contact us by writing to info@cektos.dk.