What I Learned While In Treatment for Anxiety and Depression

What does a headline like that say to you?

To be sure, some might read it as weakness, vulnerability, deficiency, or frailty — and that’s fine for them. Those are the people still blinded by stigma — and those aren’t the people I’m trying to reach.

But if the headline pulled you in because you thought, “Whoa, that’s a pretty risky thing to share…” or “I’m struggling right now, and I want to learn what I can,” or “I wonder what treatment is really like,” know that I wrote this piece for you.

In 2018, I published an essay called What I Learned While In Treatment for Anxiety and Depression, and the response continues to astound me. I regularly hear from readers who use the piece as a way to recognize and validate their own unique struggles with anxiety, or to help someone they love see that they’re not alone. These kinds of connections are why I write posts like this, and why I’m never afraid to share a headline like the one above.

I’ve managed anxiety all my life, and suspect I always will. And, having experienced an abundance of trauma, it’s no wonder anxiety is my full-time, invisible, deeply annoying sidekick. But when I finally figured out how to name my anxiety (and the reasons it exists), I began to feel less like a victim and more in control of a condition so many of us are forced to deal with .

And right now, in the midst of a global pandemic, I believe it’s worth sharing this post again as a way to support others who may be struggling.

I was recently asked if I consider what I share to be “emotionally brave” — and my answer was an emphatic NO. This isn’t being brave. This is just writing the truth.

I hope you find this post helpful…either for yourself or for someone who may be struggling.

Keep going. It’s worth it.