Perhaps you have the feeling of constantly thinking about what might happen.
Your mind anticipates, checks, analyzes, prepares. Even when everything seems objectively fine, part of you remains mobilized — as though something demands that you stay alert.
In some people, anxiety takes the form of incessant rumination. In others, it manifests more in the body: muscle tension, fatigue, restlessness, difficulty relaxing or falling asleep. Others describe a more diffuse feeling: the sense of never quite feeling completely safe.
Anxiety can take many forms. But behind this diversity, there is often one thing in common: a nervous system that continues to function as though it must keep watch for a danger that never comes.
What anxiety does to the brain
Neuroscience now allows us to better understand this phenomenon.
Chronic anxiety corresponds to a prolonged mobilization of the brain systems involved in vigilance, protection, and anticipation. Even when no objective threat is present, the brain can continue to function as though it must constantly monitor its environment, detect potential risks, and prepare to respond.
This is not a weakness or a lack of willpower. Anxiety rests on protective mechanisms that have often served a useful function at some point in a person's history. The problem arises when these mechanisms remain activated for too long, or in situations where they are no longer necessary.
Over time, this state of hypervigilance becomes costly. It continuously mobilizes the resources of the nervous system, contributes to fatigue, disrupts sleep, reduces the capacity to be present in the moment, and can weaken relationships, self-confidence, or the general sense of wellbeing.
When presence becomes safety
Behind many forms of anxiety lies a simple question: to what extent does the nervous system genuinely feel safe?
This question does not depend solely on the objective dangers present in the environment. It also depends on the person's history — on their relational experiences, and their experiences of loss, rejection, unpredictability, or threat.
The brain gradually learns what it can expect from the world and from others. When it has often had to remain vigilant in order to navigate uncertainty, that vigilance can become a habitual way of functioning.
From this perspective, anxiety is not simply an excess of fear. It can be understood as the consequence of a nervous system that can no longer fully release its protective mechanisms.
The question then becomes not only: "Why am I anxious?"
It becomes:
"What would allow my nervous system to recover a greater sense of safety?"
How I work
My approach draws on contemporary neuroscience, emotional regulation, EMDR, schema therapy, and current knowledge of how the nervous system functions.
The goal is not simply to make symptoms disappear. It is to understand what is maintaining the state of vigilance, to help the nervous system recover greater flexibility, and to allow a more stable sense of inner safety to emerge.
Depending on your history and your situation, the work may focus on understanding your anxiety mechanisms, regulating the autonomic nervous system, reprocessing difficult experiences that continue to fuel hypervigilance, or identifying certain relational patterns that sustain the sense of insecurity.
The therapeutic relationship itself often constitutes an important part of the process. It gradually offers the nervous system the experience of a sufficiently stable, predictable, and safe presence — one that allows new ways of being with oneself, with one's emotions, and with others to develop.
The pace is always yours. The work is built progressively, in respect of your history, your resources, and what you are ready to move through.
Related resources
Depending on your situation, you may wish to consult the following pages:
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EMDR – Understanding how the reprocessing of difficult memories can support psychological healing.
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Trauma – Better understanding the consequences of simple or complex psychological trauma.
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Attachment – Understanding how the brain gradually learns whether it can rely on the presence of others.
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Borderline Personality Disorder – Understanding the difficulties of emotional and relational regulation.
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Anxiety – Understanding the mechanisms of worry, hypervigilance, and panic attacks.
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Depression – Exploring the link between psychological exhaustion, loss of momentum, and a sense of disconnection.
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Couples Therapy – Understanding relational dynamics and attachment difficulties within the couple.
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Consultations – Practical information on consultations in Marseille or via teleconsultation.
Contact and appointment booking →
For a deeper exploration of the neuroscience of presence, you can also visit The Brain of Presence section.