May of 2015, I arrived at my high school dressed in a blue robe with a matching blue cap and stood in line waiting for my name to be called to receive my diploma. As the procession began the only thought I had in my head was of the future that was to come during my freshman year of college. But that’s where the problem began.

My freshman year of college I did not know a word to put towards the headaches and sharp pains in my chest until I came across this with my doctor at my campuses’ health center My brain became immersed in these future-oriented thoughts and since then it has controlled my life, decisions, and actions.

Anxiety, in my own terms, since it’s different for everyone, is the state of being anxious, stressed, or worried about the events and situations of the past, present, and future. While it is normal to experience these episodes there comes a time when it becomes too much. A typical day for me goes a little like this:

I wake up tired. Tired because I fell asleep late after thinking over and reviewing things I said or did that day. After getting out of bed, I then start to think about the day ahead of me. I think about the drive I have to take to school. While at school, I think about the drive I have to take home. “What if I get into an accident?” “What if my car breaks down?” What must be done when I get home. “Do I still need to go to the store?”

While I express to my friends that I’m tired during the day, when I arrive home I am more awake than ever. As I write this article I am thinking if it is even good enough. Why is that? It’s because I am anxious. It is because of my anxiety. I create my own little world that consists of these worries while shutting other people out. My anxiety is not something that can be seen on the outside. My anxiety is what eats me up on the inside. Though it’s easy for people to tell me to “Move on” or “Get over it”, it in fact, becomes harder to do these actions.

Anxiety is like pouring beer in a cup. As you pour the cup, it starts getting filled with more foam than beer. Once the foam goes down, you begin to pour more beer and once again, foam fills to the top. Not leaving enough room for actual beer. This is similar to thoughts of someone who has anxiety. The beer is the substantial thoughts while the mind becomes filled with frothy thoughts that always appear. With no control over.

My anxiety is a lot of things but it is not something that holds me back. My anxiety is burdensome but my spirit keeps me from giving up. My anxiety is depressive but I won’t let it become suppressive. My anxiety is not overreacting. So before you speak on the situation that troubles me, I would like to introduce myself,

Hello, my name is ____ and I have anxiety.