Anxiety
How to Build Confidence When You Suffer from Anxiety
People joke a great deal about having an emotional disorder, whether it is claiming they have OCD when it comes to the organization of their closet or just casually stating that something random gives them anxiety. However, anyone who ever has truly struggled with an emotional disorder will tell you it is no laughing matter,…
Read MoreAnxious and Depressed: Understanding the Connection Between Anxiety and Depression
On the surface, anxiety and depression may appear to be two completely, separate emotional issues. After all, a person who is struggling with anxiety may show symptoms by being obviously nervous, sweaty, and extremely agitated, while someone with depression may not have symptoms that are so apparent, such as a feeling of worthlessness and doom,…
Read MoreTechniques for Coping With Social Anxiety
What is your biggest fear? Is it spiders? Snakes? Earthquakes? Heights? Do you avoid these fears at all costs or do you face your fears and work through them? As human beings, we all experience fears and anxiety from time to time, but can you imagine if the one thing you feared most was the…
Read MoreFailure to Launch due to Anxiety
In my experience as a licensed marriage and family therapist at Optimum Performance Institute, I have seen many young adults struggle with Failure to Launch Syndrome due to anxiety. It is not surprising that these two issues are related and even interconnected. When people think about anxiety, they often think about excessive worrying and irrational…
Read MoreOvercoming Anxiety Related Failure to Launch Issues
Anxiety can be extremely difficult to describe and understand because all of us at times are anxious, and this phenomenon manifests itself in a variety of ways. It may show up in our body by us genuinely having headaches, stomach aches, nausea, or muscle tension. The pain and other uncomfortable physical sensations are real, and…
Read MoreCoping Effectively with Anxiety & Depression Over the Holidays (webinar)
When The Holidays Are Triggering Optimum Performance Institute invites you to this important, free webinar on coping effectively with anxiety, depression, and eating disorder issues over the holidays. This event will be co-facilitated by psychiatrist Robert “Dr. Bob” Fischer, M.D. and April E. House, MA, MFT, Therapist and Eating Disorder Specialist, and moderated by Debbie…
Read MoreAnxiety, Transitioning to Adulthood, & Failure to Launch
Anxiety: “A feeling of worry, nervousness or unease, typically about something with an uncertain outcome.” Isn’t everything in life uncertain to a certain degree? Becoming a young adult, becoming independent, and taking on new responsibilities of life all come with a lot of uncertainties and a lot of unknowns. This time of life causes anxiety…
Read MoreLike College, Just without the Late-Night Pizza
Creating an environment for young adults where working through past mistakes or forging positively focused experiences and then turning them into effective life habits is what Optimum Performance Institute is all about. With most of our participants being of the college-going age, OPI’s education department plays a considerable role in this effort to assist these…
Read MoreA Love Story: The Dysfunctional Relationship Between Fear and Avoidance
Working as a therapist at a residential treatment program, I see young adults who constantly struggle with issues of fear and avoidance. They avoid paying bills, dodge most social encounters, and procrastinate on schoolwork. Such evasion makes it very difficult for them to move forward with their lives, achieve success, and gain greater independence. In…
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