Irene Brotons: "There are those who live with anxiety problems".

Psychologist Irene Brotons talks to us about pathological anxiety and non-pathological anxiety.

A large part of those who come to psychotherapy do so because they experience difficulties in managing and channeling their emotions. Among those emotions prone to give rise to problems, anxiety is one of the most present in those who feel bad, and it is not by chance: it is a phenomenon that can be caused by a wide variety of situations, and is usually associated with discomfort.

It is true that anxiety is not always a problem; in fact, in most cases it not only does not harm us but helps us even if we do not realize it. But it is also true that it can trigger very harmful psychological alterations. To understand this fact, in this interview we talk to an expert in anxiety: the psychologist Irene Brotons..

Interview with Irene Brotons: understanding anxiety problems and their treatment in therapy.

Irene Brotons is a health and legal psychologist with a practice in Valencia, although she also provides online therapy. She offers professional support and treatment to people of all ages who experience problems such as psychological disorders, lack of emotion management skills, or poor dynamics in family or couple relationships. In this interview he talks to us about one of the psychological phenomena that leads more people to seek psychotherapeutic help: anxiety.

How would you define the term "anxiety" to someone with no training in psychology?

Anxiety is an intense emotion in which we feel fear. It is characterized by thoughts in which we try to predict the future, but it is always with anticipations from a very negative perspective. We fear that certain misfortunes or catastrophes will occur, that makes us go into a state of alarm and our whole body is activated, feeling a series of physical symptoms such as tachycardia, sweating, anguish or tremors.

As a society, do we tend to underestimate the positive aspects of non-pathological anxiety?

I think yes, there is a tendency to underestimate the positive aspects of non-pathological anxiety. It is an adaptive anxiety that serves us to stay alive and has done so throughout the lives of human beings. It is the anxiety that causes us to flee from danger when faced with a threatening situation.

When primitive man faced animal attacks, anxiety allowed him to flee more effectively. Anxiety is the response of the nervous system to a situation that we consider dangerous, and this guarantees our survival.

And on the other hand, is it usual that we do not give enough importance to anxiety problems, not considering going to the psychologist when they affect us?

It is usual that people do not give enough importance to anxiety problems. They go to the psychologist when anxiety problems are very evident in their lives, manifesting themselves through unpleasant symptoms such as anguish or sweating.

There are even those who live with these anxiety problems for a long period of time, and do not go to the psychologist until it is practically impossible for them to lead a normal life.

It is important that all people become aware of the great discomfort that anxiety problems can generate, disabling the sufferer to perform activities of daily living.

What are the frequent anxiety problems among those who come to your office?

The frequent anxiety problems among those who come to my office are panic attacks, agoraphobia, generalized anxiety related to work or family, and anxiety in social situations, which is the fear of being valued negatively.

To what extent can we learn to regulate our anxiety? Total control of what goes through our minds and how we feel is impossible.

We can learn to regulate our anxiety to the point of being able to control it in our day to day life. It is true that it is impossible to make anxiety never appear. Anxiety will not disappear, but through therapy we will learn techniques to control it and prevent fear from paralyzing us.

It is very rewarding for a person to feel that they can control their anxiety, and that it does not prevent them from attending any event or doing any activity.

What therapeutic techniques and resources do you find most valuable in helping people with anxiety disorders?

I find exposure therapy and therapy based on cognitive restructuring very valuable in helping people with anxiety disorders.

In exposure therapy, as the name suggests, the patient is exposed to what is causing the discomfort. When this happens, the person becomes habituated to the stimulus that produces anxiety, and becomes aware that many of his or her fears are unfounded, and anticipate danger in a way that does not conform to reality.

Therapy based on cognitive restructuring is based on the fact that people feel and act according to their way of thinking. Therefore, if a somewhat maladjusted way of thinking is modified, anxiety will be modified, reducing it.