Worry that won't switch off
Generalized anxiety looks like a mind that runs scenarios all day — work, money, health, your kids — and never lands anywhere. You know most of it isn't likely. That never seems to matter.
Anxiety treatment · Arlington, VA
Outpatient anxiety treatment in Arlington, Virginia
CBT, exposure therapy, PHP and IOP, and psychiatric medication management for generalized anxiety, panic disorder, social anxiety, and OCD — for adults in Arlington, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia.
- Most insurance accepted
- Day & evening IOP tracks
- Telehealth for Virginia residents only
Medically reviewed by the VABH Medical Team
When treatment helps
Anxiety patterns we treat
Most people who start with us are still working, still parenting, and still described by everyone around them as "fine." Anxiety is usually invisible right up until it isn't.
Panic attacks
Racing heart, chest tightness, tunnel vision, the certainty that something catastrophic is happening. Many people land in an Arlington ER first and get told their heart is fine. Panic disorder is highly treatable once it's named.
Social anxiety
Dread before meetings, rehearsing sentences before you say them, replaying conversations for days afterward. In a region built on networking and briefings, this one quietly costs people careers.
Avoidance that's shrinking your life
Declining the invitation, skipping the drive, working from home again. Avoidance calms anxiety for an hour and strengthens it for a year — it's the single clearest sign it's time for structured treatment.
Anxiety in your body
Jaw clenching, stomach problems, headaches, shoulders at your ears, three hours of staring at the ceiling before you sleep. Anxiety often shows up medically long before anyone calls it anxiety.
Drinking or using to take the edge off
A couple of drinks to get through dinner, a benzodiazepine that keeps needing to be higher, cannabis to fall asleep. Self-treatment works briefly and then makes baseline anxiety worse. We treat both together.
How we treat anxiety
Skills, exposure, and psychiatric care — together
Anxiety responds to treatment better than almost any other condition we treat — but only when the work is structured and consistent enough to outlast the avoidance.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
The first-line treatment for anxiety disorders. We identify the catastrophic predictions driving the fear, test them against reality, and build responses you can actually use in a meeting, a car, or at 2 a.m.
Exposure & response prevention (ERP)
The gold standard for OCD, panic, phobias, and social anxiety. Gradual, planned, collaborative exposure that retrains the fear response — never a surprise, never a test you're set up to fail.
Psychiatric evaluation & medication management
Board-certified evaluation to confirm the diagnosis and rule out thyroid, sleep, and substance-related causes. Our medical staff may prescribe SSRIs, SNRIs, buspirone, or hydroxyzine, with a deliberate approach to benzodiazepines and a plan for tapering if you're already on one.
DBT & distress tolerance skills
Concrete skills for the spikes — paced breathing, grounding, TIPP, and emotion regulation — so a panic wave becomes something you ride out instead of something that runs your week.
Trauma-informed care & EMDR
When anxiety is downstream of trauma, treating the surface symptoms alone tends to stall. EMDR and trauma-focused therapy address the memories keeping the alarm system switched on.
Dual-diagnosis care
Alcohol, cannabis, and benzodiazepines are the most common ways people manage anxiety on their own — and withdrawal from all three drives anxiety up. When both are present, we treat them under one coordinated plan.
Levels of care
Anxiety treatment programs, from PHP to aftercare
Most people aren't sure which level of care they need — that's what the assessment is for, and you can step up or down as things change.
- 015 days/week · ~6 hrs/day
Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP)
Our most structured outpatient anxiety treatment. Daily group and individual therapy with psychiatric oversight while you sleep at home — the right level when panic or OCD has made work, school, or leaving the house unmanageable.
- 023–5 days/week · day or evening
Anxiety Intensive Outpatient (IOP)
Several sessions a week of CBT, exposure work, and skills groups, with morning and evening tracks so treatment fits around a job. The most common level of care for anxiety that weekly therapy hasn't moved.
- 03Weekly · ongoing
Outpatient therapy & medication management
Weekly individual therapy, ongoing medication management, and skills groups that keep exposure gains from eroding after intensive programming ends.
- 04When more support is needed
Higher level of care (vetted partners)
If inpatient psychiatric care or medically supervised benzodiazepine or alcohol withdrawal management is the safer first step, we coordinate placement with trusted, vetted providers and take the guesswork out of the handoff — then pick your plan back up when you're ready for outpatient care.
Across the river from Maryland
Convenient for Maryland commuters
Our Arlington center is a short drive from Montgomery County, Prince George's County, and the broader Maryland suburbs. Many clients choose in-person PHP and IOP here because the commute is manageable and the program fits around work. Telehealth is available for Virginia residents between in-person visits.
Common questions
Anxiety treatment questions, answered
How do I know if my anxiety needs treatment?
The practical test isn't how anxious you feel — it's what anxiety is costing you. If you're avoiding things you care about, missing work, not sleeping, having panic attacks, or drinking to manage it, that's the threshold. You don't need to be in crisis to qualify.
What's the difference between PHP and IOP for anxiety?
PHP is about six hours a day, five days a week, and is used when symptoms are severe enough to interrupt daily functioning. IOP is a few sessions a week with day and evening options so you can keep working. Most people start in one and step down through the other.
Do I have to take medication for anxiety?
No. CBT and exposure therapy work well on their own for many people, and medication is offered rather than required. For moderate to severe anxiety the strongest evidence is therapy plus medication, and that decision is yours to make with real information.
I'm on Xanax or Ativan — can you help me get off it?
Yes. Benzodiazepines calm anxiety short-term and often raise baseline anxiety over time. We build a slow, medically supervised taper alongside CBT and skills work so you have something to stand on as the dose comes down. Never stop a benzodiazepine abruptly on your own — that can be dangerous.
Does exposure therapy mean you'll force me into something scary?
No. Exposure is planned with you, starts well below your current tolerance, and moves at a pace you agree to in advance. Nothing is sprung on you. The point is repeated, controlled practice that teaches your nervous system the alarm was wrong.
Does insurance cover anxiety treatment?
Most major commercial plans cover outpatient mental health treatment, including PHP and IOP. Our admissions team verifies your benefits and tells you the expected cost before you commit to anything. Self-pay options are available if you're uninsured.
Do you offer telehealth for anxiety treatment?
Yes, for Virginia residents — our clinicians are licensed in Virginia, so telehealth sessions are available statewide. In-person care at our Arlington center is open to Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC residents.
In-person anxiety treatment at 5400 Shawnee Road, Arlington, VA for VA, MD, and DC residents. Telehealth for Virginia residents only.
If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or call 911.
Get help today
Talk to someone who's done this before
Whether you're calling for yourself or for someone you love, the first conversation is free and completely confidential.
- Admissions — 24/7(571) 586-2883
- Location5400 Shawnee Road, Arlington, VA
Insurance accepted
Insurance coverage for anxiety treatment
Anxiety, panic, and OCD treatment are covered behavioral health benefits under most plans, including Anthem, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Optum, Sentara Health Plans, UMR, and Johns Hopkins Health Plans. Send your card and we'll tell you exactly what your plan pays for.
Don't see your plan? Call us — we also work with out-of-network benefits and self-pay.