Finding Support

Therapy

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the most studied psychological treatment for anxiety. It helps you notice the thoughts and behaviours that keep anxiety going, and gradually face what you’ve been avoiding.

It has strong research behind it, and its benefits can last well after therapy ends [1][2]. It doesn’t have to mean sitting in a clinic, either. Guided online programs can work about as well as face-to-face sessions, which helps if cost, distance or anxiety itself makes appointments hard [2].

For children and teenagers, therapy is usually the first step, and it often helps [3][4].

Other approaches people find helpful include acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), which focuses on making room for difficult feelings while moving towards what matters to you, and therapies that work with the body and the past, such as somatic therapy and IFS.

You can understand an anxious thought and still feel it in your whole body. If talk therapy alone hasn’t been enough, that doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It may mean you need an approach that works with your nervous system too.

Psychedelic-assisted therapy

Psychedelic-assisted therapy is an emerging area in anxiety research, and it has made a significant difference for some people, including our founder.

Promising research and the lived experiences of people who have found meaningful relief are bringing renewed attention to psychedelic therapies. These experiences deserve to be heard and explored through greater research, funding and access to well-supported care.

Psychedelic use has a long history, including within Indigenous healing and ceremonial traditions. Today, research is exploring how these substances, alongside therapeutic support, may help people experiencing mental health challenges, including anxiety.

There is still much to understand, but there is real reason for hope. We’re encouraged by the growing interest in bringing psychedelic therapies into mental health care, with preparation, skilled support and ongoing integration helping people turn meaningful experiences into lasting change.

Medication

Guidance for Australian GPs from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners says CBT should be part of first-line treatment for generalised anxiety, panic disorder and panic attacks, and that SSRI and SNRI antidepressants are generally suitable as first-line medicines for anxiety [5].

On benzodiazepines, such as diazepam (Valium) or alprazolam (Xanax), the same guidance says their use in anxiety is mostly limited to severe or treatment-resistant cases, that they are generally regarded as a short-term option, and that they should be avoided for people with alcohol or other substance use problems [5].

Our founder’s first questions for anyone who has been on medication for a long time are simple: Is it still working? After years of medications, has there been any shift? Is it improving your life and the way you function?

If you want to reduce or stop a medication, talk to your prescriber first.

Body-based approaches

Because anxiety lives in the body, many people find that working with the body is where things really begin to change. Somatic therapy, breathwork, yoga, massage and other body-based practices help you notice what’s happening inside and build a greater sense of safety.

Research into many of these approaches is still emerging, and the evidence varies from one practice to another. But they are attracting growing interest, and for many people they have been a turning point.

Keep looking for what fits