Anxiety has been a ruling force in my life for as long as I can remember— but it's definitely become more difficult to manage over the past few years. Despite taking steps to learn how to cope, I still have more off-days than I'd like.
Sometimes, it helps me to let my anxiety manifest itself as a person— lots of poetry I've written in the past does this. It feels good to let it become something real, something I can interact with, as opposed to this looming force putting more pressure on my chest. If my anxiety was a real person, there are a few things I'd like to tell him...
1. People don't care about things as much as we do.
2. People like me a lot more than you make me think.
3. I am not a failure.
4. I am allowed to make mistakes.
5. I deserve all the good things that come to me.
6. I do not deserve to be miserable.
7. I do not deserve to hate myself because of you.
8. Puking is not a helpful reaction to anything—stop making it happen.
9. I *can* function without color-coordinating my life.
10. Nobody is going to crucify me if I'm a few minutes late every once in a while.
11. I am smart enough to follow my dreams.
12. I am capable of accomplishing anything I want.
13. A B+ will not destroy my life.
14. I am not my past mistakes.
15. There's no need to dwell on awkward encounters for weeks on end.
16. Seriously, nobody cares about it as much as we do.
17. I don't need to take things so seriously.
18. I don't need to take myself so seriously.
19. I don't need to take YOU so seriously.
20. You do not own me.
21. You are more dependent on me than I am on you.
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