Anxiety is always described as this monster living in the dark corners of our minds. Always awaiting the perfect moment to throw itself into our day. We sacrifice our lives in order to hopefully avoid those attacks.
Maybe it’s crowds that trigger you, so you avoid fests and other big events.
Or maybe driving gives you that panicky feeling, so you don’t even have your license.
Whatever it is that leads you to that place, I’m learning now that avoiding it will only make it worse.
Turns out there is no magic cure-all. There is no knight in shining armor to rescue us from the monster always keeping us on our toes. Instead, it’s our job to be that for ourselves.
I have spent a lot of my life running from these things that scare me but being afraid has never solved anything. Temporarily? Sure, in the moment problem solved. But here I am, six years into this journey and my fear of school and driving has only gotten more and more intense. I finally got tired of letting my anxiety tell me what I can and cannot do so I have decided to take control.
Now I am NOT saying this is as simple as just ‘getting over it’, but it is as simple as taking that first step. Take that leap of faith.
Story time!
So, most of my friends and family know that I have had some intense anxiety surrounding school in the past. My senior year it got so bad that I ended up dropping out and hiding for over two years until I even had the confidence to get my GED. For a long time, I bounced around the idea of going back to school.
“I want to make something of myself, despite my anxiety.”
One day, I just decided I had enough moping around wishing I was brave enough to register for school. I decided I AM brave enough. I AM good enough. So, I called the admissions advisor at the school I was interested in and I registered. I didn’t give myself time to over think it. To make it an easier transition, I went with a fully online school and I am only taking one to two classes at a time. But here I am, six weeks into being a college student! And I haven’t died!! It’s just one small step for some people, but for me it was a big accomplishment. And that one leap of faith I did is now giving me that encouragement to make other changes in my life, like learning how to drive and starting this blog.
Don’t get me wrong, I have had a few panic attacks about school since starting. But luckily, I’ve had people who care about me there with me every step of the way to talk some sense into me when I start thinking irrationally.
As Shia Labeouf once said, “Don’t let your dreams be dreams” 
Moral of this story is that you can accomplish way more than your anxiety lets you believe. It is a scary beast that makes itself look bigger than it really is, but if you stand your ground you can move mountains.
Are you afraid of crowds? Find an event you’re interested in, go with someone you trust and stick to the back of the crowd.
If you’re like me and panic with driving, take it slow and learn to drive around your neighborhood.
The key is to take it slow. Ease yourself into these uncomfortable situations and you might just come out a different person.
(I’d like to add that I am very obviously NOT a professional, yet at least, so take my words with a grain of salt. Don’t put yourself into any dangerous situations because of my poor advice.)
If you got something out of this blog, please share it with family and friends.
I am working on figuring out the groove of this site and exactly the content I want to post, so if you have any specific topics you would like me to cover please comment below or email me!
Positively Anxious 