Anxiety is one of the most prevalent mental health problems we face, and with the added stresses of the current pandemic, it’s more common than not. And while our initial response to anxiety is often to resist it or label it as bad, the truth is that it’s a completely natural response.
What you’re experiencing is multi-layered. You might be vigilant about staying healthy or worry about what will happen if you get sick. You may be afraid of financial security or feel uncertain about the future of your job. Any of these is anxiety-provoking on its own, but when they all happen at once, it can be downright overwhelming. And when all of this combines with the disconnection of social distancing, anxiety intensifies even more.
What you’re going through right now is normal and appropriate. If you’re having feelings, congratulations! You’re human. This also means that you’ll need to heal mentally and emotionally to navigate this trying time in a clear, grounded way.
What ‘s Happening at The Sanctuary
The Sanctuary is open and offering in-person, residential treatment for anxiety. We’re doing so in a secluded environment, in the safest possible way, using a full range of therapies aimed at deep-level healing. This includes:
- A two-prong approach to treating anxiety symptoms and causes
- Nutrition to calm your stress response and build immunity
- Functional medicine to treat all of your bodily systems
- A supportive environment to rebuild human connection
Rising Anxiety in Response to the Coronavirus
COVID gives us plenty of reasons to stress. For an anxious mind, the catastrophic possibilities are endless. And we also feel less connected to the people who normally relieve that stress: our friends, coworkers and communities. Even people we’re not particularly close to, but are used to seeing every day, go a long way in buoying our mood. If you’re feeling isolated and anxious, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, you’re part of the vast majority of people who are feeling worried and concerned.
Anxiety is an adaptive reaction, designed to keep us safe. But it can also spiral out of control. Anxiety affects how our brain works, causing it to constantly search for potential threats. And when it finds them, it latches onto them, leading to a tailspin of panic and paralysis. When you’re caught in anxious thinking, you envision worst-case scenarios that could (but probably won’t) happen in the future. And since your brain can’t tell the difference between what’s real and imagined, your entire system reacts as if it’s happening now. The resulting physical response – pounding heart, shortness of breath, shot nerves – as you well know, is not fun.
Fear or Anxiety?
It’s helpful to note the difference between fear and anxiety. While anxiety has to do with an imagined threat in the future, fear has to do with a perceived threat that’s actually happening. Fear, like anxiety, is a normal, healthy emotion that’s designed to protect us. And when you listen to it from a place of acceptance, it can be very useful. It can help you assess risk, solve problems and take practical action to improve your situation.
Anxiety, on the other hand involves intrusive thoughts that become ruminations. This can even become habitual. That is, anxiety can even be present even when nothing in particular is causing it. And the ultra-heightened state it creates often puts you at greater risk. That’s because it turns off the part of your brain that thinks creatively and communicates well: the very skills you need to thrive.
People who develop an intelligent way of relating to their emotions are more resilient to anxiety-causing situations like the one we’re in now. This is what we teach the many people who look for relief from their anxiety, or co-occurring anxiety with addiction, at The Sanctuary.
Approaching Anxiety Holistically
Over 60% of the clients we currently see come to us for some form of anxiety. We understand that this is a disorder of epidemic proportions that needs to be addressed – but in a very different way than the conventional approach. Up until now, anxiety was primary treated with medication. But we now know that the medications used to treat anxiety in the short-term ultimately make it worse.
At The Sanctuary, we take a two-prong approach. That is, we start by alleviating the symptoms of anxiety, and then we dig into the core reasons for it. These might include:
- Underlying trauma
- Disempowering beliefs that you’re not aware of, but inform your life
- Stress held in your body
We use a variety of incredibly effective modalities to address these issues, such as:
- Psychotherapies
- Trauma release exercises (TRE)
- Yoga
- Breathwork
- Massage
- Somatic bodywork
- Energy medicine
- Meditation
- Sound healing
This complete healing journey looks at all of your systems, and how they interact, to thoroughly address anxiety everywhere it shows up for you.
Keeping Safe During COVID-19
Reduced Risk
We’re not a large center with a revolving door – we’re a small, tight-knit community. We limit our client groups to 10 people at a time to preserve our intimate, personal feel. This, combined with our secluded location in the national forest outside of Sedona, has the added benefit of reducing your exposure during COVID.
Nutrition for Anxiety and Immunity
At The Sanctuary, we pay special attention to gut health. That’s because it has a huge impact on your mental wellbeing. There’s a strong correlation between leaky gut, poor diet and high anxiety levels – and our nutrition program, designed with the help of doctors at the forefront of this field, aims to correct this. Our clients find relief from many of their anxiety symptoms through dietary changes alone, and this sets the stage for more productive work in therapy.
Anxiety also affects your immune system. Your personalized holistic diet and supplement protocol not only encourage a healthy brain, but also include specific additions to strengthen your immunity.
Anxiety Treatment is an Essential Service
While many treatment centers have turned virtual or shut down due to the pandemic, we continue to offer live, face-to-face therapy. That’s because we know how vital human connection is to the healing process. And we do this as safely as possible, following a detailed COVID protocol informed by state and local authorities as well as our own clinical and medical directors.
You deserve so much more than a life stuck in survival mode. You deserve to thrive.
Contact us today to learn more about how our inpatient anxiety treatment program can help you create a new relationship with the world.
He is the Founder, Administrator, Counselor at the Sanctuary at Sedona. He has a BA in Political Science and is currently Senior teaching staff at Four Winds Society, an international school of energy medicine. His credentials also include being an Ordained Minister; a Certified Shamanic Breathwork® Facilitator; a Founding Member Society for Shamanic Practitioners; a Member of Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology; a Member of the National Institute for Holistic Addiction Studies. [email protected]