Anxiety Counselling for When Worry Won't Switch Off
You lie down tired, and your mind starts running anyway. What if the meeting goes badly? What if you said the wrong thing? What if something is wrong and you haven't spotted it yet? Maybe your chest is tight before you've left the house, or you've started turning down plans because they take more energy than you have.
Anxiety often hides behind getting things done. Plenty of people carry it while holding down a job, raising kids, and looking fine to everyone around them.
Anxiety therapy in Trenton with Marc Hoogstad at Acacia Counselling gives you a place to say all of it out loud to someone who listens without judging or hurrying you. Sessions feel like a conversation with a person, and you decide how fast to go.
Signs You Could Benefit From Therapy for Anxiety
Anxiety looks different from person to person. These are the signs people mention most:
- Worry that jumps from one thing to the next and won't settle
- A racing mind at bedtime, or waking in the night with your thoughts already going
- Tight shoulders, headaches, a knot in your stomach, or a pounding heart
- Avoiding calls, social plans, or places that feel like too much
- Feeling on edge, short-tempered, or unable to relax
- Checking, planning, and rechecking to feel safe
Everyone feels anxious sometimes. It's worth talking to someone when the worry lasts for weeks, cuts into your sleep, work, or relationships, or has you doubting your own mind. Anxiety also travels with low mood for many people, so therapy for depression and anxiety often begins with the same conversation. Marc can help you work out what's going on, and he'll tell you when it makes sense to see your doctor as well.
How Anxiety Therapy Works With Marc
Marc Hoogstad is a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) with an M.Div in Counselling from Tyndale Seminary. He works with adults and with teens 15 and older.
The first session is mostly your story: what the worry looks like, when it started, and what you'd like to be different. Marc explains how he works, and the two of you decide where to begin and how often to meet. There's no intake checklist or clinical questionnaire to get through before you've had a chance to talk.
Some people want to understand where their anxiety comes from. Others mainly need ways to get through a hard week. Marc works with what you bring, and if something falls outside what he offers, he will say so and point you to someone who can help. You can read more about him on the about page.
What Anxiety Counselling Sessions Look Like
Step 1: Share What the Worry Looks Like
Step 2: Make Sense of What Sets It Off
Step 3: Build Steadier Ground
What Can Change With Anxiety Therapy
Some anxious thoughts will always show up, because worry is part of being human. Anxiety therapy helps the worry take up less room. Over time, people often find:
- More space between a worry and their reaction to it
- Easier nights, with less replaying of the day
- Words for what they feel and what they need from other people
- Less avoiding, and more of the life they had been stepping around
- Hard days that feel more manageable
If your anxiety is tied to a big change, such as a move, a new job, or a loss, life transitions therapy may be a good starting point. If you're worn out from carrying too much, burnout counselling covers that ground. For a wider conversation about how you're coping, see individual counselling.
Anxiety Therapy in Trenton and Online
Marc sees clients in person at Acacia Counselling, 228 Colonial Dr in Trenton. Online therapy for anxiety is available for people in Quinte West, Belleville, Brighton, and Frankford, and it follows the same conversational approach as an in-person session. Online sessions can be easier if leaving the house is part of what's hard, or if your week is already packed. The telehealth therapy page explains how they work.
Evening appointments run Monday to Thursday. If you're looking for a therapist in Trenton who will take things at your pace, you're welcome to book a first session whenever you feel ready.
Frequently Asked Questions About Anxiety Therapy
Anxiety therapy is a series of conversations with a counsellor about the worry, tension, and avoidance that anxiety brings. You and Marc look at what sets it off, what keeps it going, and what helps, then work at a pace you choose.
If worry lasts for weeks, disrupts your sleep, or is shrinking your life, it's worth talking to someone. You don't need a diagnosis to book. A family doctor or psychologist is the right person for a formal diagnosis or questions about medication.
Anxiety and low mood often show up together, and many people come in with both. Marc works with what you bring, and if you need support beyond what he offers, he will say so and help you find it. If you are having thoughts of harming yourself, call or text 9-8-8 any time.
Cognitive behavioural therapy for anxiety is one structured approach. Marc's sessions are conversational and shaped around you rather than a set program. If you want a specific structured program, ask before you book and he will tell you whether he's the right fit.
There's no set number. You and Marc decide after each session whether to keep going.
Sessions are $140 for 50 minutes. Cash, cheque, e-transfer, and credit card are accepted.
Yes. What you share stays between you and Marc, with the standard legal exceptions that apply to counselling in Ontario, such as risk of harm to yourself or others.
Ready to Ease the Worry?
You don't have to have it all figured out first. Reach out when you're ready, and Marc will find a time that fits your schedule.
