Anxiety is a normal part of the human nervous system and plays an important role in detecting and responding to potential threats. However, when anxiety becomes excessive, persistent or difficult to control, it can begin to interfere with everyday life, relationships, work, decision-making and overall psychological well-being.
I provide psychotherapy for anxiety and anxiety-related difficulties in Yerevan, using a structured, evidence-based approach primarily grounded in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).
My work focuses not only on reducing symptoms, but also on understanding and changing the cognitive, behavioural and emotional processes that maintain anxiety over time.
Anxiety problems I work with
Psychotherapy may be appropriate when anxiety manifests as:
- Generalized anxiety and persistent worrying
- Panic attacks and panic disorder
- Social anxiety
- Agoraphobia
- Specific fears and phobias
- Health-related anxiety
- Persistent overthinking and catastrophic thinking
- Fear of losing control
- Excessive monitoring of bodily sensations
- Avoidance of anxiety-provoking situations
- Reassurance seeking and safety behaviours
- Difficulty tolerating uncertainty
- Anxiety related to major decisions or life changes
I also work with obsessive-compulsive symptoms and other difficulties in which anxiety, avoidance and repetitive attempts to gain certainty play an important role.
When anxiety becomes a problem
The purpose of psychotherapy is not necessarily to eliminate anxiety completely.
Anxiety itself is an adaptive biological and psychological response. The problem usually develops when the brain begins to interpret relatively safe situations, thoughts, bodily sensations or uncertainty as signals of significant danger.
This may create a self-reinforcing cycle:
perceived threat → anxiety → avoidance or attempts to control anxiety → temporary relief → increased sensitivity to future threat.
Over time, people may begin organizing more and more of their lives around preventing anxiety.
For example, they may avoid particular places, repeatedly check their physical state, seek reassurance, postpone decisions, mentally analyze possible negative outcomes, or try to achieve absolute certainty before acting.
These strategies can provide short-term relief while unintentionally maintaining anxiety in the longer term.
How I work with anxiety
My therapeutic work is primarily based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and is adapted to the individual psychological mechanisms maintaining the problem.
Depending on the clinical situation, therapy may include:
Understanding the anxiety mechanism
An important first step is developing a clear understanding of how anxiety works in your particular case.
We examine triggers, thoughts and interpretations, emotional responses, physiological reactions, avoidance patterns and behaviours that may be maintaining the problem.
Working with anxious thinking
Anxiety is often accompanied by systematic overestimation of danger and underestimation of one’s capacity to cope with uncertainty or discomfort.
Therapy can involve identifying and evaluating these patterns and developing more flexible and realistic ways of interpreting situations.
The purpose is not simply to replace “negative thoughts with positive thoughts,” but to develop more accurate and functional thinking.
Changing avoidance and safety behaviours
Avoidance frequently reduces anxiety in the short term but strengthens it in the long term.
Where clinically appropriate, CBT therefore includes gradual behavioural work and exposure to situations, sensations, thoughts or uncertainty that have become associated with danger.
The process is planned collaboratively and adapted to the individual rather than based on forcing a person into feared situations.
Working with bodily symptoms of anxiety
Anxiety can involve rapid heartbeat, dizziness, tension, shortness of breath, trembling, gastrointestinal discomfort, feelings of unreality and other physical sensations.
A central part of therapy may involve understanding these reactions and reducing catastrophic interpretations of normal stress and anxiety responses.
Developing greater tolerance of uncertainty
For many people, anxiety is maintained by attempts to obtain certainty about things that cannot actually be made completely certain.
Therapy can therefore involve learning to make decisions and continue functioning without repeatedly checking, analyzing or attempting to eliminate every possible risk.
learn more about my work on CBT for Anxiety Disorders>>>
Anxiety, the brain and behaviour
One of my particular professional and research interests is the neurobiology of anxiety disorders and the relationship between brain, cognition and behaviour.
For this reason, when useful, I integrate psychological work with understandable explanations of the neurobiological mechanisms involved in threat detection, learning, avoidance and emotional regulation.
Understanding these mechanisms can help make anxiety less mysterious. At the same time, psychotherapy is not simply about understanding why anxiety occurs. Change usually requires new behavioural and cognitive learning.
What happens during the first session?
The first meeting is primarily an assessment and formulation session.
We discuss:
- the difficulties that brought you to therapy;
- when and how the anxiety developed;
- situations that trigger or intensify it;
- thoughts, emotions and physical symptoms;
- avoidance and coping strategies;
- the effect of anxiety on work, relationships and everyday life;
- previous attempts to manage the problem;
- your goals for psychotherapy.
Based on this information, we can develop an initial understanding of the problem and determine whether psychotherapy with me is an appropriate option.
About my professional approach
I am a psychologist (PsySD) and psychotherapist holding the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP).
My clinical work is primarily grounded in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, informed by evidence-based and integrative approaches. Anxiety disorders and their neurobiological mechanisms have also been among my principal clinical, research and teaching interests for many years.
I am the author and co-author of books and scientific publications in clinical psychology and psychotherapy, including publications devoted specifically to anxiety and anxiety disorders.
Sessions in Yerevan and online
Psychotherapy sessions are available: In person in Yerevan and Online
Sessions can be conducted in: Armenian · English · Russian · Polish
All therapeutic work is conducted within professional boundaries and under conditions of confidentiality and ethical responsibility.
Schedule a consultation
If anxiety, persistent worry, panic, avoidance or overthinking is significantly affecting your everyday life, you can contact me to discuss whether psychotherapy may be appropriate for your situation.