All our groups combine a non-judgmental and supportive environment with evidence-based therapy.
We currently have one group available (see below for more information).
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety
Note: This class is currently not running.
ReGain Control over your anxiety and your life
Do you feel anxious a lot, even when there's little reason to feel anxious? Do you find yourself unable to stop feeling anxious? Do your anxious feelings interfere with your daily life?
If you answered yes to these questions, you may have an anxiety disorder. Luckily, you’ve come to the right place.
Our group “Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety” provides cutting-edge, evidence-based care for those who struggle with anxiety and provides a space for them to make meaningful connections with others who also struggle with anxiety.
This group is led by the founder and executive director of Seattle Anxiety Specialists, Blake Thompson, LMHC.
When: Thursdays from 3:15pm to 4:30pm
Format: In-Person
Therapist: Blake Thompson, LMHC
Ages: 18 and up
Cost: $75 per session
Billing information for our groups
$75 per 75-minute session.
If you wish to seek reimbursement from your insurance company, you’ll need to receive a diagnosis. You may provide paperwork that establishes diagnosis from another provider (e.g., a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other mental health provider you have seen) or you may schedule a 60-minute, one on one, psychiatric diagnostic evaluation, where we can determine whether and which diagnosis is appropriate. Scheduling a diagnostic evaluation would is optional, would need to be scheduled separately, and would be billed at $275.
Weekly payments for groups and classes are only waived when a session is cancelled by the therapist leading the group/class. Although notifying your therapist that you cannot make it to a group/class session is very much appreciated, you will still be billed the weekly fee until you terminate your membership in the group/class.
You can find out more about our billing policies here: SAS Billing Policies Page.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How is this different than a support group?
Support groups are wonderful and we often encourage our patients to attend support groups in the Seattle area, but the groups and classes we provide are not support groups — they are a form of psychotherapy.
Some of the major differences are that: A) support groups are usually peer led, while psychotherapy groups are led by a licensed mental health care provider; B) psychotherapy groups are a form of healthcare, with the goal of diagnosing and treating mental health disorders using evidence-based practices, while support groups are not a form of healthcare at all; C) support groups usually take place in church basements or community centers, while psychotherapy groups take place in a confidential setting at a mental health clinic; and D) while usually much more affordable than individual therapy, group psychotherapy still costs considerably more than support groups which are usually provided free-of-charge by non-profits or religious groups.
2. Who gets screened out?
As healthcare providers, we have an ethical obligation to make sure we’re providing care that we believe will be beneficial for our patients. As such, we screen out potential patients that we believe need different types of care than our groups provide. Some examples of a patient we might refer out are: someone who A) is in active psychosis, B) is actively suicidal or homicidal, C) is actively struggling with an eating disorder, D) is actively struggling with addiction, or E) is actively struggling with a personality disorder.
Evidence Based Treatment:
Our groups are based on evidence that, for certain issues, therapy in a group setting is at least as effective as therapy done one-on-one, and confers additional benefits to participants. This has been established by numerous studies and meta-analyses. For example:
(1) Norton, Peter J. "An open trial of a transdiagnostic cognitive-behavioral group therapy for anxiety disorder." Behavior Therapy 39.3 (2008): 242-250.
(2) Dugas, Michel J., et al. "Group cognitive-behavioral therapy for generalized anxiety disorder: treatment outcome and long-term follow-up." Journal of consulting and clinical psychology71.4 (2003): 821.
(3) Paul, G. L., & Shannon, D. T. (1966). Treatment of anxiety through systematic desensitization in therapy groups. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 71(2), 124-135.
(4) Erickson, David H. "Group cognitive behavioural therapy for heterogeneous anxiety disorders." Cognitive Behaviour Therapy 32.4 (2003): 179-186.
(5) Manassis, Katharina, et al. "Group and individual cognitive-behavioral therapy for childhood anxiety disorders: A randomized trial." Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 41.12 (2002): 1423-1430.
(6) Norton, Peter J., and Debra A. Hope. "Preliminary evaluation of a broad-spectrum cognitive-behavioral group therapy for anxiety." Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry 36.2 (2005): 79-97.
(7) Barkowski, Sarah, et al. "Efficacy of group psychotherapy for social anxiety disorder: A meta-analysis of randomized-controlled trials." Journal of anxiety disorders 39 (2016): 44-64.