Adulting with Anxiety: A Softer Side of Humanity...

I’ve tried to find reasons to be thankful for anxiety in my life, and it’s hard to do. But I must admit I’ve seen such care and compassion from others as a result of it. I’m exposed to a softer side of humanity that isn’t always present in typical interactions.

A good friend came over to be with me on a day that was incredibly tough for me. I was switching medications, going through horrible withdrawal, and my husband was out of town. I was not coping very well, as the physical and mental side effects were incredibly overwhelming. It was as if anxiety was giving me a giant unwanted embrace – tentacles wrapped around me tightly, engulfing me.

There I laid on the couch, tears in my eyes, watching Property Brothers on the HGTV channel. But those smiling brothers and their decorating expertise didn’t catch my attention as they normally do. The show seemed so surreal.

Meanwhile, my friend sat beside my head on the end of the couch and held my hand. That’s all she did. And that’s all I needed.

When my mind was spinning with pessimism and a flood of weird and sad thoughts and impressions, her hand grounded me. It was literally the touch of reality I needed to remind me that the turmoil inside me would stop, and the peace I sensed from her would one day be mine.

It would just take some time, but I would make it.