Life With An Anxiety Disorder | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Health and Wellness

Life With An Anxiety Disorder

What it's like to live with an anxiety disorder.

29
Life With An Anxiety Disorder
Pulse Headlines

Every since I was little, I have dealt with some sort of anxiety. For example, when I was younger I had separation anxiety from my parents. Throughout the years, anxiety has evolved inside of me, to a much greater extent. I now suffer from what's known as generalized anxiety. I feel funny using the word 'suffer' because it's not a death defying disease. However, suffering is the appropriate term in some circumstances. I would consider it suffering when you receive the feeling inside of you that you are drowning, like everything in the world is crashing down all at once. Yet you can't pinpoint the exact reason as to why you are feeling this way. I would also consider it suffering when you have words and emotions built up inside of you, busting at the seams to come out but you can't find the words to correlate with them.

On the other hand, I would also consider anxiety as a different way of life. It's really no different than someone who enjoys sports rather than music, or an extrovert versus an introvert. It's all about the way that your brain functions. So for people who enjoy sports, that's the majority of their thought process. Whereas, people who live with anxiety's thought process involves overthinking everything, focusing on the negative in every situation instead of the good, and also feeling that everyone in the world is around to do them wrong. Now trust me, as much as I wish I could turn a switch in my brain off to bring these thoughts to a halt, that is nearly impossible.

These thoughts and insecurities have kept me up until the darkest hours of the night questioning everything happening in my life. Wondering why I can't just relax and go to sleep. Notice, however, I did say that it was nearly impossible. I've practiced "drills" of how to handle certain thoughts, and things to do if a situation like that ever occurs. I have conditioned my brain to think a positive thought the second that a negative one enters my mind.

On the downside of the conditioning practice I have, if someone says something that sets off a trigger, I can't help what happens next. I can't control having an anxiety attack or just starting to cry. All I can do is let the unconscious thought pass through my mind with time. I can't tell you what's wrong because even I don't know the answer. I don't know why I am the way that I am, but I've learned to love it. Living with anxiety is probably one of the hardest things I have ever had to do but the more problems I have, the more practice I get on how to handle it. Every day gets better as people with anxiety learn to cope with it.

So for the people with anxiety, you're not alone.

And for the people who know of someone living with anxiety just remember, its not an illness or a disease, it's a way of life, it's their way of life.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

3182
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments