Anxiety Therapy in Glasgow from Specialist Psychologists

Understanding anxiety and when it becomes a problem

The first step is a clear picture of what is driving your anxiety and what keeps it going. Treatment is formulation-led and tailored to your needs, whether your anxiety shows up as persistent worry, panic, social fear, health anxiety, or avoidance.

Anxiety is a normal human response to perceived threat or uncertainty. It becomes a difficulty when it is disproportionate to the situation, persists over time, or begins to limit your ability to live the life you want. You may notice:

• Worry that is hard to control
• A racing heart, muscle tension, or breathlessness
• Avoiding the things that trigger it
• A constant sense of dread

Living with anxiety can be exhausting, and it often affects sleep, concentration, relationships, and work. Many people have experienced anxiety for so long that it feels like part of who they are. Psychological therapy can help you understand the patterns that maintain your anxiety and develop new ways of responding, so that anxiety no longer dictates your choices.

Types of anxiety we work with

Our psychologists are experienced in working with the full range of anxiety presentations, including:

• Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD): persistent, excessive worry across many areas of life, often accompanied by restlessness, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating.
• Social Anxiety: intense fear of being judged, embarrassed, or negatively evaluated in social or performance situations, leading to avoidance of everyday interactions.
• Panic Disorder: recurrent panic attacks with sudden surges of intense fear and physical symptoms, often accompanied by worry about when the next attack will occur.
• Health Anxiety: excessive preoccupation with the possibility of having or developing a serious illness, often involving repeated checking, reassurance-seeking, or avoidance of health-related information.
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): unwanted intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviours or mental acts (compulsions) carried out to reduce distress.
• Specific Phobias: intense, persistent fear of a specific object or situation, such as flying, blood, needles, or animals, that leads to significant avoidance.

Each of those links goes to a page on that kind of anxiety, with what it looks like and how we treat it. If you are unsure which fits you, your psychologist will help you understand this when you first meet. You do not need a diagnosis to begin therapy.

The therapies we use

We draw on a range of therapies with strong evidence for treating anxiety, tailoring our approach to your specific needs and preferences.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT is recommended by NICE as a first-line psychological treatment for most anxiety disorders. It helps you identify and change the patterns of thinking and behaviour that maintain your anxiety. CBT for anxiety typically involves learning to recognise anxious thinking patterns, gradually approaching situations you have been avoiding, and developing practical strategies for managing worry and physical symptoms.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

ACT takes a different approach to anxiety by helping you change your relationship with anxious thoughts and feelings, rather than trying to eliminate them. Through mindfulness and values-based techniques, ACT helps you build psychological flexibility so that you can pursue what matters to you, even when anxiety is present.

Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT)

CFT is particularly helpful when anxiety is accompanied by high levels of self-criticism, shame, or a strong inner critical voice. Developed by Professor Paul Gilbert, CFT helps you understand your threat system and develop a more compassionate way of relating to yourself, which can reduce the intensity and persistence of anxious responses.

Schema Therapy

For people whose anxiety has deep roots in early life experiences, Schema Therapy addresses the core emotional patterns (schemas) that developed in childhood and continue to drive anxiety in adulthood. This approach can be especially effective for longstanding anxiety that has not fully responded to shorter-term therapies.

EMDR

EMDR can be helpful when anxiety is connected to specific distressing experiences. By reprocessing these memories, EMDR can reduce the emotional charge that fuels anxious responses and help the brain store these experiences in a less distressing way.

How anxiety therapy works

Therapy for anxiety begins with a thorough assessment where your psychologist takes time to understand your experiences, the patterns that maintain your anxiety, and what you would like to change. Together, you develop a formulation, a shared understanding of how your anxiety developed and what keeps it going, which guides the therapy.

Your psychologist will recommend an evidence-based approach suited to your needs and work with you collaboratively throughout. Sessions last 50 minutes. How often you meet is agreed between you and your psychologist. Between sessions, you may be invited to try new strategies or notice particular patterns, helping you apply what you learn in therapy to your everyday life.

We review progress at regular intervals and adjust the approach as needed. Our aim is to help you develop the skills and understanding you need to manage anxiety independently, not to create dependence on therapy.

Our anxiety psychologists

Our psychologists hold doctoral-level qualifications and are registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). They have specialist training in evidence-based therapies for anxiety and bring years of experience working with people experiencing a wide range of anxiety difficulties. View our full team to find the right clinician for you, or get in touch and we will match you with someone suitable.