If You Ask Someone with Anxiety Why They ‘Do This to Themselves,’ You Really Have No Clue How Anxiety Works

On a scale of annoying to completely debilitating, anxiety can affect its victims in all sorts of ways and on quite the wide spectrum. Unfortunately, the way that many non-sufferers instruct people to deal with it is “don’t sweat the small stuff” or even worse, to “stop stressing out.”

Nothing could quite be less helpful for one who suffers from anxiety and genuinely feels the pain of this disorder, much like cancer spreading the infection of nerves, irrational fears, and worry throughout your mind and body.

It’s not something you can easily just “stop” or “quit worrying about,” but rather than allowing it to consume her, mommy and marriage blogger jthreeNMe brings a whole new perspective in a Facebook post that may help you rethink your anxiety. And if you’re a non-anxiety sufferer, it may help you to understand those affected by the condition a little bit better.

While jthreeNMe doesn’t expect everyone to agree with her (and even had some anxious thoughts about writing this post), she hopes it will inspire and encourage those affected by anxiety in any way today:

“Anxiety.

We all know what it feels like, right?

Wrong.

Just this weekend I was feeling anxious.

Now let me make clear that my anxiety is not debilitating nor is it really inhibiting, as it is for some. The type of anxiety I feel is more of an annoyance than anything else.

But — get this — I’m not the only one that my anxiety annoys.

Nope.

It annoys my husband and quite possibly my children though I have never asked them.

I’ve always had an anxious personality, and I’ve always coped with it as I will continue to do. I have found things that help with it like exercise, music, writing (that’s a big one for me), coming up with a plan (and four back-ups), prayer and snuggles with the kiddos all help. Still, sometimes anxiety still gets the best of me.

Yep, I just disclosed that the worry thief gets the best of me; the part that my loving family is supposed to get.

How rude of it to steal my joy and that of my loved ones in on fell swoop?

How powerful it is to be capable of such, right?

Wrong again.

Anxiety only has power over us if we let it.

Now, don’t get your panties in a wad just yet, as I suspect some of my anxiety-ridden readers are.

How do I know you about want to pummel me through your computer screen or iPhone? Because I get you and I am just like you, on a level unique to me, and I, too, have (and still) scoff at the contention that I have control over my anxiety.

Seriously, if you tell a person with anxiety to calm down, Lord help you.

If you tell a person with anxiety to ‘just stop,’ well you might as well just stop your mouth from spitting any more unhelpful garbage that your conversation counterpart will want to take right to the trash.

If you make the mistake of asking someone with anxiety why they ‘do this to themselves,’ you really have no clue how anxiety works.

But, guess what?

Neither do I. I have not researched the subject, except for the fact that I successfully deal with it and can speak from experience. For me, a lot of the time, my anxiety breeds creativity and serves as some bomb-diggity motivation.

Maybe you are someone who needs medication for your anxiety, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Maybe you are someone who doesn’t need or merely doesn’t want medication for yours, and there is nothing wrong with that either.

Maybe you are someone who has experienced anxiety your whole life.

Maybe you are someone whose newfound or later-developed anxiety is the result of life challenges or tragedies you have faced.

Maybe you see a psychologist because ‘talking it out’ helps.

Maybe you rock a self-care plan like nobody’s business because that is your saving grace.