One day at a time. Through the many struggles I have faced in my life, I have learned this lesson quite well. I have learned that in order to live a full and happy life, you need to take things a day at a time and remember nothing is ever as good as it seems, and nothing is ever as bad as it seems. Those are the two things that 1. My dad says to me on a daily basis, and 2. I keep repeating in my head on a daily basis. And those are also the two things that come to my head when someone says something along the lines of “Oh my gosh. I’m so stressed.” Like I said, 1. Take it a day at a time, and 2. Nothing is ever as good as it seems and nothing is ever as bad as it seems. Simple as that.

Now, I know it’s not as simple as that. Many people who suffer from anxiety have problems with this, especially when they are having an anxiety attack. When the brain is in panic mode, the part of the brain that thinks logically is overloaded, so the person cannot think in any logical manner. So, they most likely act rash, communicate poorly, or may come off as angry. But mostly, all of the time, it is just the illogical brain talking. This makes it very hard to think, “Take it one day at a time” because the person is thinking that they are never going to get out of this never ending cycle of fear and anxiety.

More and more people these days are saying they have anxiety. Yes, I do agree with those people; they do possess some form of anxiety or worry, but when they bring up the words “anxiety attack” or “panic attack,” they should really think about what they are saying. They do not understand how many people around them that really hits home for. They don’t understand how many of their friends have irrational fears of crowds, or when they are in large crowds, feel like their head and body are going to explode. They do not understand how many people need help. They do not understand the other side. They just understand their side. Their side of worrying about tests, worrying about how that paper went over with their teacher or when they will get accepted or denied from their dream college. Worriers worry about life goals; people with anxiety have life as their goal.

I will say that everyone worries as it is healthy for our brains to worry to a point. But when that worrying gets out of control, that’s when you have a problem. That is when you need to stop. Stop still in your mental tracks and think. Think about what is causing your life to be this way, what is making you worry, and what is making you feel so anxious. Then, cut it out. I had to do this. I had to stop and think, and then cut things out of my life that were increasing my anxiety to a 10/10 when it should have been a 6/10. I cut caffeinated drinks because the caffeine makes my heart beat faster and it makes me feel like I can’t breath. Anxiety inducer. I cut out toxic friendships that made me feel dumb or made me feel bad about myself. Anxiety inducer. I cut out junk food that made me feel terrible in my own skin. Anxiety inducer.

I was able to do things to make myself feel better and that make my anxiety decrease on my own. But I also had the help of many people, including my dad, mom, family, and all of my friends. They were such a help to me. But I think one of the biggest helps to me were those two phrases my dad keeps telling me every day: “Take it one day at a time” and “Nothing is ever as good as it seems, and nothing is ever as bad as it seems.”