The therapists at CZTG pride themselves for their commitment to being person centered and utilizing multiple modalities of anxiety therapy in Denver. What this means is we see you versus a diagnosis, we rely on your input versus a fixed course of action, and we view the relationship between therapist and client as valuable in the reduction of anxiety symptoms.

Anxiety therapy here offers the warmth, lack of judgment, and true human connection that is so often missing in the real world and often a catalyzing force for anxiety. One of the unique parts of our practice is the opportunity to get a feel for our therapists before making a commitment: we offer a free 15-20 minute consultation to discuss your needs, hopes, and reasons for pursuing anxiety treatment. Click here if you want to initiate this process and see if CZTG is indeed the best place for you. 

Each therapist at CZTG holds a master’s degree in a therapy-related field and is fully licensed to practice therapy in Colorado. We don’t believe that learning should stop after grad school or full licensure, and all of our therapists are required to undergo additional advanced training and ongoing weekly consultation.

Our group practice is unique, in part, because we are all specialists, not generalists. While each therapist’s training is somewhat unique (and is detailed on their individual bio pages), our entire team operates using similar modalities and approaches. We’re all fully trained in EMDR trauma therapy and are rooted in the principles of AEDP therapy, somatic therapy, and parts work therapy.

Like we mentioned above, anxiety in episodic, low level quantities is a natural and productive emotion for our nervous systems that alerts us to threat and directs action. Since anxiety is hardwired into our nervous systems for survival purposes, it is rare to live a life entirely free of anxiety. However, we know anxiety therapy is doing its job when:

• We experience more calm, groundedness, and safety in our bodies than not

• A trigger that once made us feel 10/10 awful now feels like 4/10 (or lesser)

• The presence of anxiety does not make us feel like we are a “bad” or “weak” person

• We can choose from different ways of self-soothing when anxiety arises

• We know how to constructively communicate our anxiety triggers and needs to others  

• We can be aware of the anxiety without being consumed by it

Full disclosure: talking about daunting things with another can create and/or heighten existing anxiety. Another full disclosure: anxiety that is met with unconditional support from a trained professional with attention to nervous system regulation and your other needs lessens, softens, quiets, and minimizes anxiety. Your CZTG anxiety therapist understands that therapy can be a scary process and that processing hard things in our past can naturally come with some anxiety. Your therapist promises to be attuned to your body cues and your emotional thresholds to gauge when to slow down, when to stop, and when to dig deeper. No assumptions are made about what “you can handle” and becoming familiar with the constraints of our anxiety can actually empower us to understand its triggers and its solutions more easily. 

This is one of those questions that is greatly person dependent, which is why we offer the ability to meet in person at 3035 E Evans Avenue, virtually from the comfort of your own home, or a little bit of both. The best type of therapy is the therapy that meets your needs for growth and safety on an evolving basis. The connection you forge with your therapist and the growth you can feel in session are greater determinants for healing than virtual versus in person - so the choice is yours! We believe strongly that transformation can occur through a screen or on one of our therapy couches. 

Whether you’re coming to therapy for anxiety treatment or for other concerns, the answer to this question is always person dependent. For our therapists to establish the greatest understanding of your story and needs - and for you to feel comfortable being vulnerable - we recommend beginning with weekly therapy whenever possible. After working together for a month or two, you and your therapist can discuss if this frequency feels good or if it would be best to move to once every other week. We meet with clients at a minimum of twice per month in order to ensure that therapy is effective and beneficial.

Because all work at CZTG is trauma-informed and approaches anxiety, depression, and other symptoms from their root, therapy is typically ongoing over a course of many months to many years. A lot of our clients maintain regular therapy as part of their ongoing self care routine even after they’ve worked through the issue(s) that initially brought them to therapy. However, therapy is voluntary at all times and you dictate when you feel like it has accomplished what you intended it to.

We believe that life already has enough spaces full of ‘to dos’. Why should therapy be another? Our anxiety therapists believe in the healing power of creating change in the room itself, with another human, versus on our own. That being said, if it feels supportive to you to deepen themes or interweave exercises introduced in the therapy room in the outside world, your therapist can absolutely work with you to create some between session structure.

Exposure therapy is a behavioral therapy technique that involves gradually increasing direct or indirect (i.e. through visualization) exposure to an anxiety trigger. The anxiety specialists at CZTG do not use this approach unless you and your therapist collaboratively decide this would be beneficial and it can be implemented safely. Without consideration for nervous system regulation, the degree of the fear, or its potential root in trauma, exposure therapy can create more harm than good if conducted improperly. That’s why we decide to lean on other modalities, like AEDP or EMDR, to help process and manage anxiety primarily.