Empathy Health Clinic's psychiatry team treats the full spectrum of anxiety disorders, recognizing that anxiety is not a single condition but a family of related diagnoses with distinct treatment implications. Generalized anxiety disorder involves persistent, excessive worry across multiple domains — work performance, health, finances, family safety — that feels uncontrollable despite rational reassurance. Social anxiety disorder creates intense fear of judgment in interpersonal or performance situations, often leading to avoidance patterns that progressively narrow your world. Panic disorder produces recurrent, unexpected episodes of acute physiological distress accompanied by catastrophic thoughts. We also evaluate and treat specific phobias, health anxiety, separation anxiety in adults, and anxiety secondary to medical conditions or ADHD. Our board-certified psychiatrists conduct differential diagnostic evaluations that distinguish between these subtypes and identify co-occurring depression or attention disorders, because accurate diagnosis is the foundation of targeted, effective treatment.
Psychiatry evaluation for anxiety
Your anxiety evaluation at our Winter Park office — or via telepsychiatry — is a comprehensive 45-to-60-minute clinical interview conducted by a board-certified psychiatrist. The session begins with an open-ended exploration of your current symptoms: when anxiety started, how it has evolved, what triggers it, and how it affects sleep, concentration, work performance, and relationships. Your psychiatrist uses validated screening instruments such as the GAD-7 and the PHQ-9 to quantify symptom severity and screen for comorbid depression. Medical history review rules out physiological contributors including thyroid dysfunction, cardiac arrhythmias, caffeine sensitivity, and medication side effects. Family psychiatric history provides context for genetic vulnerability. By the end of the evaluation, you will receive a clear diagnostic formulation explaining which anxiety subtype best fits your presentation, a discussion of treatment options, and a recommended plan that may include medication, therapy referral, or a combined approach tailored to your unique needs.
Treatment planning
Anxiety treatment planning at Empathy Health Clinic follows a collaborative, evidence-based model. When medication is appropriate, our psychiatrists prescribe from established first-line options including SSRIs such as sertraline or escitalopram, SNRIs like venlafaxine or duloxetine, or buspirone for generalized worry. For acute situational anxiety, hydroxyzine provides non-habit-forming relief without the dependence risks associated with other sedating agents. Your psychiatrist starts at conservative doses and titrates gradually, scheduling follow-ups every two to four weeks during the adjustment period to monitor response and manage any side effects such as initial activation, gastrointestinal discomfort, or sleep changes. Treatment plans also incorporate lifestyle recommendations — structured exercise, sleep hygiene, caffeine reduction — that have demonstrated anxiolytic effects in clinical research. When therapy would strengthen outcomes, we coordinate with our in-house licensed therapists or provide referrals, ensuring medication and behavioral strategies work as complementary components of a unified plan.
When therapy is recommended
Therapy is recommended alongside or instead of medication in several clinical scenarios. If your anxiety is primarily driven by avoidance behaviors — declining social invitations, procrastinating on anxiety-provoking tasks, avoiding health screenings — cognitive-behavioral therapy and exposure-based interventions directly target these patterns in ways medication cannot. Therapy is also essential when maladaptive thought patterns maintain anxiety: catastrophic thinking, probability overestimation, or intolerance of uncertainty are cognitive habits that respond well to structured therapeutic intervention. For patients who prefer to minimize medication use, or for whom medication alone has produced only partial improvement, therapy provides a complementary pathway to symptom reduction. Our licensed therapists at Empathy Health Clinic use evidence-based modalities including CBT, acceptance and commitment therapy, and mindfulness-based approaches. When both psychiatry and therapy are indicated, your providers share clinical notes and coordinate treatment adjustments to ensure seamless, integrated care.
Telepsychiatry option
For patients who prefer the convenience of virtual appointments, Empathy Health Clinic offers full telepsychiatry services for anxiety care throughout Florida. Your evaluation, medication management, and follow-up visits are conducted via our HIPAA-compliant video platform with the same clinical rigor as in-office sessions. Telepsychiatry is particularly beneficial for patients whose anxiety itself creates barriers to in-person care — social anxiety about waiting rooms, agoraphobic tendencies, or panic-related driving avoidance. Conducting your session from a familiar, comfortable environment can actually improve diagnostic accuracy because patients often present more naturally when physiological stress from the clinical setting is removed. Electronic prescriptions for SSRIs, SNRIs, buspirone, or hydroxyzine are sent directly to your pharmacy after each visit. Scheduling is flexible with morning, afternoon, and select evening slots available. Contact our office at 2281 Lee Rd Suite 102, Winter Park, FL to request a telepsychiatry appointment.
