How to Help Ease Anxiety During Group Counseling Sessions

Group counseling is one of the most beneficial resources one can utilize to help them manage their mental health. However, group counseling can also cause anxiety for people. Understandably, being in a group setting can be intimidating. 

As a healthcare professional, it is important to understand the cause of anxiety. It is also important to address your client’s anxiety so that they can become more comfortable seeking treatment through group therapy. SokyaHealth can offer you guidance in helping your clients become more comfortable with seeking treatment in a group therapy setting. 

The Benefits of Group Therapy

Embarking on a path to wellness and improved mental health should never be taken lightly. It can be a long and grueling road. When seeking mental health treatment, clients may open old wounds, relive their trauma, and come to terms with how mental illness has affected their life and ability to function. The road to wellness can be isolating. Not everyone is inclined to enter a path to improved mental health. Group therapy is an excellent solution when the road to wellness becomes lonely.

Your client will experience many benefits from attending group therapy. For the first time in a long time, they will feel surrounded by people who understand what they are going through. As a healthcare provider, you have the tools needed to treat their mental health. 

The Power of Peers

Clients can’t always connect with professionals the way they can connect with peers. Therefore, group therapy offers clients the ability to connect with peers who share similar experiences and that can offer different perspectives on managing mental health. Their ideas can provide guidance and accountability on how to cope. Additionally, by attending group therapy, your client can help others on their path to wellness.

Why Some People Experience Anxiety About Group Therapy

The National Library of Medicine defines anxiety as “a feeling of fear, dread, and uneasiness” that may cause someone to “sweat, feel restless and tense, and have a rapid heartbeat.” Clients struggling with anxiety disorders, and many who don’t, will experience this fear. It can become so overwhelming that it impairs their ability to function. Unfortunately, the reason people develop anxiety cannot always be easily explained. 

However, there are many reasons why your client may be anxious about attending group therapy. It is common for people to experience fear surrounding this mode of therapy. Common reasons for fear include:

• Being in a room full of strangers 

• Talking in front of others

• Sharing feelings with strangers

• Being judged

In more severe circumstances, your client may be suffering from an intense fear of people. It is important to understand the root of your client’s fear so that you can help them address and manage such fear.  

Ways to Overcome Fears of Group Therapy

In general, exposure therapy has proven to be effective in treating anxiety. Encouraging your client to attend just one group therapy session may be the first step in overcoming their fear. 

Reduce the Unknown

You can make recommendations of support groups in their area so they immediately know their options. You can also explain how a group therapy session might play out so they know what to expect. You might even educate them on precautions they can take if their main concern is being around people due to COVID-19. 

Bring a Friend

You may also recommend that they bring a trusted member of their support group to a group therapy session. Being in a room full of strangers may not seem as daunting with at least one friendly face.

Go Virtual

Virtual mental health care is another great way for clients to experience the benefits of group therapy. There are many options available to clients for both individual and group therapy. Attending these virtual platforms from the comfort of their own homes may reduce feelings of anxiety they have surrounding group therapy. 

Group Therapy at SokyaHealth

At SokyaHealth, we focus on offering clients a safe and supportive space for online group therapy. We understand that the road to mental health and wellness can be challenging, and part of our goal is to ensure clients don’t have to walk that road alone. We have created safe spaces in the form of online therapeutic groups. Group therapy can promote personal growth, healing, and the formation of healthy relationships.

You may be in a situation where your client is experiencing anxiety about attending group therapy. If so, consider recommending that they attend virtual group therapy. Sokya will help ease their anxiety around attending group therapy and offer them the chance to create meaningful connections that will improve their path to wellness. Our goal is to provide a safe and secure space that will allow people to experience collective wellness together.

Group counseling or therapy is one of the most beneficial resources one can utilize to help them manage their mental health. However, group counseling can also cause anxiety. At SokyaHeath, we understand that therapy with a room full of strangers can become a cause for intense worry. People fear talking in front of others, sharing their feelings with strangers, or being judged. Some people may even have an intense fear of people. This is why we encourage clients to attend virtual group therapy sessions. We have created an online space where clients can attend online group therapy from the comfort of their homes. Encouraging your client to try a virtual group session helps ease worry and helps clients focus on personal growth, healing, and creating authentic relationships. To learn more about helping ease your client’s anxiety during group therapy, call SokyaHealth at 800-930-0803 and (866) 65-SOKYA.