It took me a really long time to understand what it meant when people would say, “be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about”. It wasn’t until about a year ago when I finally understood what it meant. Everyone reads or hears that quote and thinks something different but I can’t help to tell people how true it really is.
About a year ago, I finally figured out why I became so vulnerable and emotional about things. Why I couldn’t be as careless as I used to or be able to handle things with a strong front. It’s called anxiety. Anxiety is a nightmare. It feels like you’re living in a bubble and don’t know how to let people in. It’s something no one can’t control. You can’t control the urge to cry at random hours of the day whether there is a reason or not. You can’t control the pressure and stress that feels like there is an elephant sitting on your chest. You can’t control the fact that you overthink almost everything, small or big and convince yourself of things that might not even be the slightest bit true. You can’t help but convince yourself that you will never be good enough. You can’t control that the littlest things can make the biggest impact on you.
For the longest time I was in denial that there was something taking control over me. I didn’t like to admit that I couldn’t handle certain things on my own, actually needing help and couldn’t be independent. I’m constantly at battle with myself because I find convincing myself I don’t care about things is the best cure but it’s not. If anything it makes it worse because how will I ever get answers if I don’t face what’s bothering me? But the big issue with anxiety is half the time we don’t know what is bothering us.
Over the past couple months I’ve learned that anxiety isn’t something to be ashamed of and it’s actually super common. Little do people know, but almost everyone suffers from a form of anxiety. Some forms of anxiety aren’t as severe but it’s definitely there. Anxiety isn’t something that needs to be hidden, it’s something that needs more awareness. For right now, my only advice is to listen to the quote because it is nothing short from the truth, everyone has a story and everyone is fighting some kind of battle. Be kind.
