Five Reasons Why Having Anxiety Can Sometimes Be A Good Thing

​Hi everyone! Look! I actually stuck to my word and am writing another post in a timely fashion *pumps fists* *pats self on back* Okay, okay, I'll stop celebrating for no apparent reason.

Anyway, I've had this post idea/topic in my mind for quite some time because I constantly see articles, BuzzFeed posts, and other web content about the negative effects anxiety has on people. I wanted to flip the script and see if I could analyze my issues with anxiety in a positive light, and thankfully, I was able to come up with some reasons.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), upwards of 18% of individuals living in the United States have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. That percentage is undoubtedly higher, as it only takes into account individuals formally diagnosed. Anyway, point being, anxiety is a prevalent ailment/illness in this world we live in. So even if you don't suffer from anxiety yourself, chances are you know someone who does.

Personally, I've been anxious ever since I can remember, but I'm not going to go into the details of that in this post, as I'm going to try to focus on the positive things that have come out of living with general anxiety for a change. So, here goes...

1) I am one motivated human being, and I get things done in a timely fashion

• When you're constantly worried about deadlines, overall performance, and wanting to cross things off your check list, you're typically more motivated to do #dowork (unless if I'm dealing with the lovely combination that is depression + anxiety... I wouldn't wish that on anyone!)
• Now, I'm not saying that you can't be a hard worker without anxiety, I'm just trying to draw a connection here when it comes to my personal experience. When I'm anxious about something, I make sure I finish it ASAP and do it to the best of my ability. Yet, there are times where anxiety can be paralyzing, of course. 

2) I am able to be more empathetic toward others who also deal with anxiety (and people in general)

• This is really helpful in my role as a teacher (especially since I teach a course centered on public speaking, which people fear more than dying apparently :-o), as I can relate to a student who is deathly afraid of giving a speech. As a result, my classroom culture is a warm and welcome one as opposed to every person for themselves/distant approach. Maybe this works for some instructors/classrooms, but not for me.
• I have friends and family members who deal with anxiety and they feel comfortable sharing their fears with me and asking me for advice. I love being able to be that person for others, because I haven't always had that afforded to me throughout my childhood and adulthood.

3) My self-control has gotten pretty impeccable over the years (unless I'm at Target... haha...)

• This is really important when it comes to my health. Since I worry about what will happen if I eat a certain food, or take a specific supplement, or even don't get to bed on time, I follow through with these behaviors. I'm not sure that that would be the case if I had a more casual attitude about everything.

4) I spend a lot of time over thinking, so I've gotten pretty good at problem solving

• When my anxiety is focused on the right task (as opposed to spending every waking hour wondering why my latest fling isn't texting me back which used to be a common occurrence), my brain latches on and runs through every possible scenario it can think of. This might be finances, tasks at work, interpersonal conflicts, lesson plans, health theories, etc.
• Pro tip: Write down the thoughts that are going on in your mind instead of letting them swirl around in your noggin'. Even if you are over thinking about something productive, it can become overwhelming until every thought is presented visually. Writing things down also helps me make an action plan and free myself of my mind games/mind trap :-)

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5) Anxiety can be channeled into productive energy

• One of my public speaking professors (and mentor and second Dad :-)) has always stated that anxiety can sometimes be a form of energy that our body doesn't know what to do with. When I'm feeling anxious, and am fortunately not paralyzed by these feelings, I try to channel that energy into something useful (e.g. a workout, a research project, cleaning up my room, cooking, etc.). This way, I'm not consumed by my anxious brain and can put my anxiety to work!
• Normally, after I am able to complete a task or get my body moving, my anxiety lessens, and I feel "normal" again (whatever that means...).

I would like to end this post by saying that I'm not trying to sugar coat what it's like to live with anxiety. I'm also not trying to say that I look at this illness this way 100% of the time. I'm not even sure if I could definitively say that I view it as a good thing 50% of the time, but re-framing the way I feel about anxiety and its effects has changed my relationship with this disease.

I don't feel like a victim in my own body as much anymore, I don't feel weak all the time, and I am able to love myself more. I also don't care about disclosing that I have anxiety anymore because it is a part of who I am, and feeling ashamed gets me nowhere. Yet, I understand if you do feel this way, because it takes a lot of self love and work to get to the point where having a mental illness is acceptable, especially with how much these illnesses are stigmatized. I felt ashamed and disgusted toward myself up until this past year for having anxiety, and I'm happy to report that I've moved beyond that mindset on most days.

So, to end this post, I kindly ask my readers to be kind to those around you and try to be open minded and supportive toward those of us with mental illnesses (or just human beings in general... except for people who don't like bacon. What's up with that? Just kidding, of course :-)). Mental illnesses can affect anyone and they do not discriminate. A relative, significant other, boss, teacher, or someone else may be struggling right now and you might not even know it. 

Any of my readers have thoughts about this? I'd love to hear your input!

Until next time,

Julie