Performance anxiety treatment

If you suffer from performance anxiety, you can have serious symptoms, so that you have less pleasure in your studies or work and in your daily life. Performance anxiety is common and is not something to be ashamed of. Unfortunately, this happens regularly, so people wait a long time before seeking professional help. That is unfortunate, because just like with physical issues, treatment can become more difficult the longer you wait and the duration of the treatment will then increase.

During the conversations, we identify the cause of your performance anxiety. We help you to see your own performance or behavior more realistically, so that your self-image will become more positive and your self-confidence will grow. Any avoidance or procrastination behavior is also addressed during the treatment.

Therapies for performance anxiety

A psychologist can apply different forms of therapy during the conversations.

During cognitive behavioral therapy we try to find the unhealthy thinking and behavioral patterns that maintain your performance anxiety. You learn to break through and change these harmful patterns, so that you suffer less from your performance anxiety. You also learn to identify factors that contribute to your performance anxiety.

Cognitive behavioral therapy may also include exposure therapy, where you are gradually exposed to the situation that causes your performance anxiety under the guidance of a psychologist. This builds confidence, allowing you to better control the situation and the symptoms of your performance anxiety after a while.

If your performance anxiety is caused by a traumatic failure experience, the anxiety can also be treated well with EMDR therapy. During the treatment, you think back to the negative experience in which you believe you failed or fell short, while you follow the therapist’s finger with your eyes. The ‘working memory’ is burdened with this, so that the negative memory disappears into the background and your feelings of anxiety diminish.

With Mindfulness you can learn to deal differently with feelings and thoughts that cause or maintain your performance anxiety. Mindfulness helps in recognizing automatic, sometimes negative patterns. If you are aware of this, you can learn to break through these automatic reactions. This allows you to deal more effectively with stress and difficult feelings. This creates more peace and less symptoms.

Breathing and relaxation exercises (body-oriented therapy) can also be used as support to learn to reduce your anxiety.

It is possible that one form of therapy is used, but a combination of different types of therapy is also a good option. At the start of the treatment process, you discuss with your therapist which form of therapy is best for you and your symptoms, and what feels comfortable for you. In this way, the treatment is tailor-made, so that you feel seen, heard and helped by us.

Contact Psychologen Amsterdam

Do you recognize your symptoms and do you need help or do you just have a question about the treatment of your performance anxiety? Then call for an appointment or send a message to Psychologen Amsterdam.