I love my anxiety! I’m so glad I’ve had depression!

Does that sound strange? Believable? 

Do you believe that I’ve come to view it as a superpower? It’s a strength and a blessing to me.

I didn’t used to feel that way. I used to hate it and fight it and wish it was gone, never to be seen again. 

One of the ways to make friends with anxiety, depression and other fears you have is to honestly think about how it improves your life. How has it made you better? How does it help you?

If your child is anxious, how has it improved her life? How is he a better person because of it? How has having an anxious child benefited you? Why are you a stronger person now? 

I’m serious. 

Make your list today. 

I was working with a client with intense anxiety symptoms that prevented her from doing major things and she hated the anxiety and the trauma it was causing and had caused her. Just this belief will keep her in resistance to the anxiety.

She was able to come up with many reasons that having anxiety was a strength and something she truly didn’t want to remove from her life. She realized she was more sensitive and tender with her children, more compassionate. She was able to help them with their own anxieties and really understand how they felt. 

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For me, I am embarrassed to think of who I was before depression and anxiety. I was so judgement and proud. I thought I knew so much. I remember thinking critically how I thought other parents should handle their kids and now I’m so grateful to feel love and compassion instead. 

Helping my kids through these things also taught me not to judge others since there was so much going on behind the scenes for us that others just didn’t understand or know about.

I’m so much more aware and sensitive to the needs of others. What a blessing to have my eyes opened. 

Now there are so many more people that I can relate to, understand and have great compassion for. I can even help them if they want it. But I also know enough that what they need most is love and compassion. 

Sometimes suffering in one area helps you relate to many kinds of suffering others experience. This was the case with the physical health problems I deal with as well. 

Anxiety makes me detail oriented and organized. I’m really good with managing the household and my family activities. I was a great secretary for the school PTSA and my church youth organization. I take great notes and plan activities well. I know I have a tendency to over plan, but the anxiety keeps me aware of things to watch out for and remember.  

Anxiety helps me to be dependable, reliable, and trustworthy.

Both Depression and anxiety have taught me to take care of myself, to love myself and to allow others that gift. They have taught me the value of self worth and how to find joy. I might never would have cared so deeply about these topics and studied them so much. Now I have knowledge and skills to help others and because of who I am, I have deep empathy and a desire to help. 

I might not have learned meditation or gone to therapy or coaching and would still be judgmental and proud and unable to feel and find joy in the present moment. I might not have learned how to be in tune with my body, mind and emotions. 

I’ve learned how to be a fighter, to figure things out, to never give up, to keep trying hour after hour, day after day. This strength is a gift I use daily. What a blessing! 

When my kids are worried or sad, I don’t think its a tragedy or a failing, I see their strength operating. Together we can watch for when it is taking over and know how to take the reins back and be in charge.

and a few more strengths to add to your list:

• Empathetic caring people, aware of and sensitive to the needs of others
• Incredibly fast thinkers, excellent in an emergency
• Can relate and have more compassion for others who are struggling
• Often very organized, hard working, conscientious and skilled multi-taskers
• Think outside the box, incredibly observant
• Most resilient people around, knows what it’s like to fight for peace and joy, a real fighter
• Pushes you to do things
• Easier to stay calm when someone else is freaking out, they really understand
• Detail oriented, prepared and organized, dependable, reliable, trustworthy, 
• Noticing details, aware of others, aware of things others miss
• Very intelligent, sensitive 
• Good at preparing their body to perform under pressure, to be alert, focused and physically primed
• Don’t forget details, aware of the rules/directions, follow the rules
• Incredibly brave! Its much harder to do things when battling anxiety, so anxious people are some of the most brave!
• Good at practicing and preparing for things, very thorough and prepared
• Very creative, huge imagination – which can cause worries, but can also be incredibly helpful to get out of worries, or just an amazing skill!
• Very intelligent, sensitive and aware of details, observant, fast thinker, good in an emergency

Here’s what two other clients have said: 

Teen girl: 

• anxiety helps me notice others or be aware more often
• Anxiety makes it easier to help others
• I have more compassion, wanting to help others and not judgemental
• I’m still showing up in a loving way even when I can’t help someone directly or there’s nothing to do
• It’s easier to stay calm when someone else is freaking out
• When something big happens I can stop and step back and think about it clearer and use tools
• I gain love, compassion, patience, understanding, calm, not judging, accepting, self-compassion, clearer thinking

Teen girl: 

• I’m more compassionate toward others. 
• It is just telling me what I need to take care of, what might be out of balance. It’s helping me that way. 
• I will be able to help others now
• I understand how others might feel, more compassionate
• I’ll be a better missionary
• I have emotional tools that will make me stronger than those that haven’t struggled yet. 

Have you started your list? Let me help you today.

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I’m doing free sessions for missionaries and parents. Schedule a time for a FREE session. Have a quick question? Shoot me an email at info@jillfreestone.com. I’d love to hear from you.