It's no shocker that people with anxiety are generally introverted people who might think about the world a little differently. Here's my opinion on being one of those people.

Don't tell me to "push myself".

Don't you think I don't already know that? I wanna be able to get my feet planted on the ground and soar my wings like you so freely do, but I can't. Something in my head tells me every time that I need more time. And you know what I've figured out? That's fine. Someone with anxiety cannot be pushed to do something. It's all about how comfortable they feel and when they'll reach that point on their own.

Don't laugh about my hang ups.

I only go to one gas station, never turn off my stereo, and have to lock my car twice or more. While you might think these things are odd, I find them peaceful. I worry about most certainly everything, so by me doing these things it gives me some sort of peace that everything will be okay. I've been made fun of countless times because other people aren't always thinking of the worst. What if I go to a different gas station and don't know how to fill up my tank? Probably sounds stupid to anyone else, but for me it causes me a lot of stress.

I'm always thinking.

My goodness it never stops. I can be nearly asleep and all of a sudden I remember that time I could of parked farther away so the people next to me wouldn't see me. I think about all the little things throughout the day that I constantly have to google answers just to satisfy my mind. Its quite annoying how much I observe people and the world and think about the what ifs.

If I reject your invite, don't be upset.

I might be the sweetest person you meet and make friends easily, but it's actually really hard for me to interact with strangers. I constantly feel like everyone's watching me and calculating what I'm doing. I worry so much about what others are thinking that I let it affect my social life. I turn down sorority events, parties, etc. because I physically cannot be in a room with all sorts of people I'm not super comfortable with. I try my hardest to get outside of my bubble (and I've been doing very good over these last few years) but sometimes I just need to say 'no' and sit in my room alone.

I hate when people use the word anxiety.

For me, anxiety is a word that runs my life. It stares back at me every time I open my prescribed medication or if I see it online in someone's post. It irritates me when people downplay the word and pretend it doesn't mean anything. So please...don't use it so lightly. Use a different word for your small fear about that test you think you got a 92 and not a 98 on. Because in my head, anxiety completely trumps it's synonyms such as nervous, afraid, or uneasy.

So there you have it, some key points from my running mind on what I deal with.