Areas of support
Anxiety is one of the most common reasons people seek counselling, and one of the most treatable. Whether you are experiencing persistent worry, panic attacks, social anxiety, or a creeping sense that something is wrong, you do not have to manage it alone.
Book an AppointmentI am Gareth Vaughan, a BACP Accredited Counsellor and Psychotherapist based in New Quay, Ceredigion, West Wales. I offer anxiety counselling in person and online via Microsoft Teams to clients across the UK.
Anxiety shows up differently for different people. For some it is a constant hum of worry that never quite switches off. For others it arrives suddenly, in physical symptoms like a racing heart, breathlessness, or a tight chest. It can manifest as dread before everyday situations, avoidance of places or conversations, difficulty sleeping, or a nagging sense that something bad is about to happen.
What all these experiences share is that anxiety has taken on a life of its own, going beyond what the situation warrants and beginning to affect how you live. That is when counselling can help.
Anxiety often has roots in past experience, early messages about safety or worth, difficult relationships, trauma, or periods of sustained stress. Sometimes it develops gradually; sometimes it is triggered by a specific event. Understanding what lies beneath your anxiety is often the first step toward working with it effectively.
I draw on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), and a Polyvagal-informed approach to help clients understand their nervous system responses, develop genuine coping strategies, and gradually reclaim the areas of life anxiety has narrowed.
Therapy for anxiety is not about eliminating all worry, some anxiety is healthy and useful. It is about reducing the grip that unhelpful anxiety has on your daily life. In our work together, we may:
If your anxiety is affecting your sleep, relationships, work, or ability to enjoy daily life, or if you find yourself avoiding things more and more to manage it, counselling is worth considering. You do not need to be in crisis to seek support.
I work with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety, panic disorder, health anxiety, phobias, and anxiety linked to life transitions, trauma, or loss. If you are unsure whether your experience fits, please get in touch, we can talk it through.
It varies. Some people find significant relief in eight to twelve sessions; others benefit from longer-term work, particularly when anxiety is rooted in early experience or trauma. We review progress as we go, and you are never committed to a fixed number of sessions.
Yes. I offer confidential anxiety counselling via Microsoft Teams to clients anywhere in the UK. Online therapy is well-evidenced for anxiety, and many clients find it more accessible than in-person work.