Hey friends! Glad you've taken the time to read this post. Yep, I know, it's yet another one of those anxiety related articles you see everywhere nowadays. But this time, I want to share my personal experience with this condition, and hopefully help explain to other half of the world what exactly having Anxiety Disorder in this modern age is like.

First of all, I want to truly express my frustration at how this condition has been so over saturated and dramatized. Yes, having anxiety is a massive pain and daily struggle, but I feel as though people in today's society treat it as though it's some rare, incurable disease, and this couldn't be further from the truth. Anxiety Disorder affects millions of people worldwide and comes in multiple different forms. The more we choose to realize and accept this, the better the half of the world without anxiety can learn to understand and accept other people with an anxiety-related disorder.

For me personally, I've had generalized anxiety my entire life. Looking back, it first became apparent when I was about 3. As a younger child, I was afraid of anything and everything: bugs on the window, old people, loud noises; you name it, I was scared of it. I also had issues when trying to socialize with other children my age; birthday parties and play dates with multiple other children were nightmarish for both me and my parents who tried taking me to these events.

As I grew older, these child-like symptoms of anxiety morphed from fear into obvious social anxiety. In middle school I struggled making friends and it wasn't always easy for me to "fit in" with the rest of the kids. While I did have a handful of very good, faithful friends, I still feared talking to and making conversation with other people my age. I fought every day to conquer and get on top of a condition I never even knew I had. By high school I had adjusted to the people and my peers around me, but I still struggled outside of school to complete even menial tasks, such as going to the grocery store or sitting in traffic. The people and the constant noises in these places made me feel panicky, like the air around me was getting thick and closing in.

All of these fears and symptoms finally came to a head when I hit college. The transition into a totally new and different place and lifestyle threw me for such a massive loop, I began shutting down entirely. Every second day was miserable for me: I over thought every thing I said or did and did the absolute bare minimum in school so I could run back to dorm room to hide away from the world. Finally life got to be just a little too much for me, and I reluctantly went to go see the campus counselor. In my own mind, I feared that the counselor would be a waste of time; I thought I could handle things myself. After all, I had done so my entire life. However, when the counselor diagnosed me with generalized anxiety disorder and began working with me, my approach to who I was and what my emotions were shifted. Being given an actual name to the monster that had been around me my entire life felt good, like I finally could physically see my problem before me and had the tools to fight it head-on.

As I've grown, anxiety is still definitely a daily task I have to work through, but it is no longer the monster that was once attacking me. So through my own personal experience with anxiety, I want to reach out to others who either think they have it, or know they have it and struggle daily to control it.

Know that there are people out there who want to talk to you about how you're feeling. Maybe they're a friend who also has anxiety, your mom because she cares about you and how you feel, or even a counselor who's trained to help people through their struggles. Also know that whatever is giving you anxiety at the moment will eventually go away. No grocery store trip, crowd of people, party, noise, or situation will last forever, and you always have the power to leave whatever uncomfortable situation you're in.

And to the fortunate people who don't have to suffer trough anxiety: be aware of those around you who do. Even just letting them know that you're watching out for them and are willing to talk with them will help tremendously. It doesn't take much to help put someone's anxious mind at ease for the moment, so just reach out and be a friend. Anxiety is an issue that can be controlled, and society is making strides every day towards making anxiety and stress a normal and natural human feeling.

So if you're reading this and feeling down on your luck over your own emotions, don't. Pick your head up, leave whatever situation is bothering you, and know that you have enough strength and power to go out and make yourself happy again.