Kristina Altomari (she/her)

Anxiety treatment includes a balance determining the triggers of anxiety, as well as learning and using coping skills. Once the triggers of anxiety are determined, we work together to reduce anxious feelings around that trigger through reframing thought patterns, problem solving, and desensitization. Using coping skills and taking back control from a trigger of anxiety can bring calm, as well as empowerment, to a person who may once have suffered from the negative toll anxiety can take.

It can be quite difficult to adjust to major life events or changes, which can occur at any stage of life and lead to unfamiliar distressing symptoms. When addressing these challenging transitions, problem solving and distress tolerance are some of the main goals of care. We work together to find the most suitable coping skills, and then collaborate on problem solving skills to address any challenges that have come up during the life transition.

When a person becomes overwhelmed and distressed, they may look to various avenues of relief to reduce their uncomfortable feelings, including self-harm. Self harming behaviors can be seen as a coping skill that a person acquires when they do not have other tools in their toolbox to navigate the challenges they may face. When working to address self harm, the main focus of treatment is finding new coping skills that encourage healing and help keep a person safe when facing distress.