Everyone feels anxious from time to time. Before a job interview, a difficult conversation, or a big life change — a certain amount of anxiety is completely normal. In fact, it’s helpful. It keeps us alert, motivated, and prepared for challenges ahead.
But what happens when anxiety stops being useful and starts getting in the way of your life?
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is your body’s natural response to perceived threat or danger. When you feel anxious, your brain triggers a stress response — releasing adrenaline, increasing your heart rate, and preparing your body to either fight or flee. This is known as the fight-or-flight response, and it evolved to keep us safe.
The problem is that in modern life, our brains can trigger this same response to everyday situations — a work deadline, a social event, or even just checking your emails. When this happens repeatedly, anxiety can become exhausting, overwhelming, and difficult to manage.
Normal anxiety vs problematic anxiety
So how do you know if your anxiety has crossed a line from normal to something that needs attention?
Normal anxiety tends to be:
- Linked to a specific situation or event
- Temporary — it passes once the situation is resolved
- Proportionate to the actual level of threat
- Something you can manage and function through
Problematic anxiety tends to be:
- Persistent — it doesn’t go away even when there’s nothing specific to worry about
- Disproportionate — the level of fear feels much bigger than the situation warrants
- Affecting your daily life, relationships, work or sleep
- Something you find yourself organising your life around to avoid
Signs your anxiety might be becoming a problem
Here are some of the most common signs that anxiety has moved beyond normal and may benefit from professional support:
1. You’re worrying constantly Your mind races from one worry to the next, even when things are going well. You find it almost impossible to switch off or relax.
2. You’re avoiding things You’ve started avoiding situations, places or people because of how they make you feel. This might be social situations, public transport, certain conversations, or even leaving the house.
3. Your body is suffering Anxiety isn’t just a mental experience. Physical symptoms like headaches, muscle tension, stomach problems, fatigue, and a racing heart can all be signs of chronic anxiety.
4. Your sleep is affected You struggle to fall asleep, wake up in the night with your mind racing, or wake early feeling already tense and anxious about the day ahead.
5. You’re using things to cope You’ve noticed yourself relying on alcohol, food, scrolling, or other behaviours to manage how you feel — even temporarily.
6. It’s affecting your relationships Anxiety is making you irritable, withdrawn, or overly dependent on reassurance from others. You find yourself snapping at people you care about or pulling away from them.
7. You’re experiencing panic attacks Panic attacks — sudden intense surges of fear accompanied by physical symptoms like a racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness or chest tightness — are a sign that anxiety has reached a level that needs attention.
8. It’s been going on for a long time You can’t remember the last time you felt genuinely calm and relaxed. Anxiety has become your default state.
What can help?
The good news is that anxiety is one of the most treatable difficulties there is. With the right support, most people experience significant relief — often more quickly than they expected.
Approaches that are particularly effective for anxiety include:
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) — helps you identify and challenge the thought patterns that fuel anxiety
- Psychodynamic therapy — explores the deeper roots of anxiety, including past experiences and unconscious patterns
- Mindfulness-based approaches — help you develop a different relationship with anxious thoughts and feelings
- Integrative counselling — draws on a range of approaches tailored specifically to you
When should I seek help?
If anxiety is affecting your quality of life, your relationships, your work, or your sleep — it’s worth reaching out. You don’t have to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. In fact, the sooner you seek support, the easier it tends to be to turn things around.
Many people wait years before asking for help — often because they tell themselves they should be able to cope, or that their problems aren’t serious enough. But you deserve support whatever your situation, and there is no threshold you need to reach before you’re allowed to ask for help.
About my practice
I’m Klara Vantrubova, an integrative counsellor and psychotherapist based in West Hampstead, London (NW6), specialising in anxiety, trauma, and a wide range of other difficulties. I offer in-person sessions in NW6, Walk & Talk therapy in the Brondesbury area, and online sessions worldwide.
If any of the signs above feel familiar, I’d love to hear from you. The first step is simply a free, no-obligation consultation — a relaxed chat to see if we’re a good fit.
👉 Book your free consultation here
Klara Vantrubova is an integrative counsellor and psychotherapist based in West Hampstead, London, offering in-person, Walk & Talk and online sessions. She specialises in anxiety, trauma, relationship issues and more.
Integrative Counselling & Psychotherapy 