I'll be the first to admit that I'm pretty new to the world of anxiety. It's something I've only been struggling with for less than a year which I'm extremely grateful for. One thing I've learned so far is that anxiety manifests itself in a lot of different ways. Some days it feels very internal and in my head. Others it's completely visible on my body. There are a lot of people in my life that have never experienced anxiety and don't know what it means to feel anxious, so I've been working on a little list of descriptors that might help people without anxiety understand those of us with it just a little better. Here are X things anxiety ACTUALLY feels like.

1. Like the one thing you're worried about is literally breathing down your neck

2. Like all the muscles in your body are trying to wring water out of themselves

3. Like a balloon keeps repetitively inflating under my lungs

4. Like an elephant is napping on my chest

5. Like my ribcage is bloated

6. Like a swarm of bees is flying through your veins

7. Like you ran an entire marathon without getting up

8. Like I'm becoming a shake weight

9. Like I'm locked in a cage watching everyone else function like actual humans without me

10. Like my body floated away from my mind in 20 directions

11. Like I'm in hell and I'm already dead