Anxiety, Stress
and Burnout Therapy
Sydney
Therapy for anxiety, stress and burnout with Chauncey Sjostedt, PACFA certified Gestalt Therapist in Surry Hills. I work with the body as well as the mind, helping you understand what is driving anxiety and develop a more spacious, sustainable relationship with pressure, stress and overwhelm.
PACFA Certified Practicing Member #29367
How anxiety, stress
and burnout show up
Anxiety, stress and burnout are among the most common reasons people seek therapy, and they are also among the most misunderstood. They are often dismissed, minimised or treated as personal failings rather than genuine experiences that deserve proper attention and care.
Anxiety, stress and burnout are related but distinct. They can overlap, feed each other and show up differently in different people. Understanding how they are presenting for you is part of the work. Here are some of the most common patterns.
Anxiety, Racing Thoughts and Avoidance
Anxiety can show up as persistent worry, a mind that will not stop running worst-case scenarios, physical tension in the body, difficulty sleeping, a pounding heart or shallow breath, or avoidance of situations that feel threatening. It can be generalised and free-floating or attached to specific situations, relationships or identities. Sometimes it is hard to name precisely; you simply feel unsettled, on edge or braced for something most of the time. Anxiety that goes unaddressed tends to narrow your world over time as you organise your life around avoiding what triggers it.
Chronic Stress, When You Cannot Switch Off
Chronic stress accumulates when demands consistently exceed our capacity to rest and recover. It can look like irritability, difficulty concentrating, a feeling of being constantly behind, an inability to be fully present even when you have permission to relax, or a physical tension that never fully releases. Many people normalise chronic stress so thoroughly that they only notice it when something finally breaks down, whether a relationship, a physical health symptom or a complete loss of motivation. Therapy helps you understand what is sustaining the stress and create space for something genuinely different.
Burnout, Emotional Exhaustion and Detachment
Burnout is more than tiredness. It involves emotional exhaustion, a sense of disconnection from work, roles or relationships that previously mattered, and often a quiet erosion of your sense of self and purpose. You may find yourself going through the motions without any real feeling behind them. Rest alone rarely resolves it, because the underlying conditions that drove you to burnout are still in place when you return. Therapy can help you understand what got you here, what needs have been going unmet, and how to begin rebuilding your life in a more sustainable, values-aligned way.
Overwhelm, When Everything Feels Like Too Much
Overwhelm is the experience of having more coming at you than your system can process at once. It can manifest as paralysis, shutting down entirely, snapping at people you care about, crying without being able to say why, an inability to prioritise or start anything, or a general sense that you simply cannot cope. It often sits at the intersection of anxiety, stress and burnout. Gestalt and somatic approaches offer grounded, embodied ways to work with the nervous system when it is in this state, without pushing faster than you are able to go.
How I work with
anxiety and burnout
I do not approach anxiety and burnout as problems to be eliminated. They are often expressions of something meaningful: of unmet needs, of a nervous system working too hard for too long, of patterns that made sense at some point and are now causing harm. Therapy begins with curiosity rather than urgency.
Gestalt Approach: What Is Happening Right Now?
Rather than analysing anxiety from a distance, we slow down and notice what is actually happening in this moment. What does the anxiety feel like in the body? What triggers it? What does it protect you from? Bringing these patterns into clear awareness creates the possibility of genuine change.
Body-Focused: Where Do You Feel It?
Anxiety and stress live in the body as well as the mind. A tight chest, a clenched jaw, shallow breath, a stomach that never fully settles. Drawing on Somatic Experiencing, I work with where anxiety lives physically, helping you develop a more grounded and embodied sense of safety. Learn more on the somatic therapy page.
Nervous System Regulation: Polyvagal Theory
Polyvagal Theory helps explain why anxiety and burnout can feel so physical and so out of our rational control. When the nervous system is stuck in a state of threat or shutdown, no amount of thinking or willpower changes it. I draw on Polyvagal principles to help you understand your nervous system and build greater capacity for regulation over time.
Building Capacity, Not Just Coping
The goal is not just to manage anxiety better. It is to understand it more deeply, to address what is driving it, and to build a genuinely more spacious and sustainable relationship with pressure, demand and uncertainty. This is a different kind of change from coping skills alone. It tends to last.
Who this
is for
Anxiety, stress and burnout do not discriminate. They affect people across professions, backgrounds and life stages. In my practice, I work with teachers, healthcare workers, creative professionals, parents, students and people at all points of transition who find themselves carrying more than they can comfortably hold.
This work is for anyone who recognises themselves in the descriptions above. You do not need a formal diagnosis of an anxiety disorder to benefit from therapy. Many people who come to me for anxiety, stress or burnout have never been formally diagnosed. They simply know that something is not working and that they want support in understanding it and finding a different way through.
You do not need to have reached a breaking point to benefit from this work. Many people come to therapy when things are functional but exhausting, when they are coping but only just, or when they recognise that the way they are living is not sustainable. That is a valid and valuable starting point.
This is also for people who have tried other approaches, perhaps CBT or medication, and found them helpful but incomplete. Gestalt and somatic work often reaches something that more cognitive or purely verbal approaches do not.
I work with anxiety in a general sense as well as anxiety specific to particular contexts: work stress and professional burnout, relationship anxiety, identity-related anxiety, anxiety connected to past experiences, and the particular anxieties that LGBTQ+ people can carry from navigating a world that is not always safe or affirming. My practice is a genuinely inclusive and affirming space.
Anxiety is often connected to perfectionism the sense that you must always be doing more, being more, achieving more. It can be connected to a history of not feeling safe, of needing to be vigilant, of taking responsibility for things beyond your control. Therapy offers a space to examine these patterns with curiosity rather than judgment, and to begin the gradual work of building a different relationship with yourself.
If you are wondering whether therapy for anxiety is right for you, the most useful thing is usually to have a first conversation. You do not need to have the right words or a clear diagnosis. You simply need to show up and share what is happening. I will help you make sense of it from there. A free introductory call is available before your first session if you would like to speak briefly before committing.
I do not currently provide crisis support. If you are in a mental health crisis, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or present to your nearest emergency department.
What sessions
look like
Sessions are 50 minutes, one-to-one and available in person in Surry Hills on Saturdays, or online via secure video on Wednesday afternoons (Glebe) and Saturday mornings (Surry Hills). There is no fixed agenda. We follow what is alive for you.
Working with anxiety in a Gestalt session might involve slowing down to notice what is actually happening in your body right now, exploring what the anxiety is pointing toward, tracking the physical sensations that accompany it, or staying with a difficult feeling rather than rushing away from it. The pace is always guided by what feels manageable and right for you.
Some people come knowing exactly what their anxiety is about. Others arrive with a vague sense of unease they cannot pin down. Both are equally valid starting points. In Gestalt, we meet whatever is actually here rather than working toward a predetermined goal.
You do not need a GP referral, a diagnosis or a Mental Health Care Plan. You simply reach out and book. All the practical details including fees and availability are on the appointments page.
Book a Session
Common questions
Questions about anxiety therapy and how it works. Full FAQ on the FAQ page.
Book a session
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Gestalt therapy is particularly effective for anxiety because it works with the body and nervous system as well as the mind. Rather than trying to reason away anxious thoughts or challenge their content, we slow down and explore what the anxiety is actually expressing: what it is pointing toward, where it lives in the body, what triggers it, and what it has been protecting you from. Developing this kind of curious awareness creates the conditions for lasting change. Somatic Experiencing and Polyvagal Theory also inform how I work with the physical and nervous system dimension of anxiety.
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Burnout is more than fatigue. It involves emotional exhaustion, a sense of detachment or cynicism toward things that previously mattered, and often a loss of your sense of meaning or professional identity. Rest alone rarely resolves it because the underlying conditions that drove you to burnout remain in place. Therapy can help you understand what got you here, what needs went unmet, and how to rebuild in a more sustainable way.
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This varies considerably from person to person. Some people notice significant relief within six to twelve sessions; others find longer-term work more meaningful and valuable. The pace depends on what is driving the anxiety, your history and your goals. We discuss this together at the start and review regularly as things develop. You are never locked in to a fixed number of sessions.
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No. You do not need a formal diagnosis, a GP referral or a Mental Health Care Plan to book a session. Many people who benefit most from therapy for anxiety, stress and burnout have never been formally diagnosed with anything. If you are feeling anxious, overwhelmed or burnt out and it is affecting your quality of life, your relationships or your capacity to function, that is sufficient reason to reach out and get support.
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Yes. Chauncey is a LGBTQ+ affirming therapist and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community. She understands the particular anxieties that can arise from navigating a world that is not always safe or affirming, including minority stress, identity-related anxiety, anxiety connected to gender exploration or transition, the weight of code-switching in professional or family contexts, and the particular grief and resilience that shapes many LGBTQ+ lives. Her practice is a genuinely safe, non-judgmental and celebratory space where you will not need to explain or justify your identity.
Take the first step
towards feeling better
Book a session in person in Surry Hills on Saturday mornings, or online via secure video on Wednesday afternoons (Glebe) and Saturday mornings (Surry Hills). Sessions are 50 minutes. No GP referral, Mental Health Care Plan or prior diagnosis required. I respond to all enquiries within 48 hours and am happy to answer questions before you commit to a session. A free introductory call is also available on request. Just mention it when you get in touch.