Helping Others With Their Struggles

As I have gotten older and become more open about my anxiety, I have had the privilege of meeting so many people who also struggle with anxiety or depression. I think one of my greatest hopes in life is to be able to make someone else’s struggle even slightly easier. I want to be the confidant that I wished I had. I always had great friends who listened, but sometimes I felt like they didn’t understand. Now, I am very blessed to be surrounded by others who understand my struggles and give me advice, but there are so many who still don’t have that. I think it is incredibly hard to find people willing to talk about their struggles at a young age, at a time in which anxiety can make an already very emotionally vulnerable time even more difficult. The greatest thing that I have learned from talking to others is that there is no way that you can “fix” it. You have to let that go, and just be there to listen and to comfort. Personally, I know that there is nothing that anyone can do for me because I have to fight my battle myself. But, when someone gave me a hug on a hard day or just sat quietly and listened to my problems, I always felt a whole lot better. Recently, I have seen one of my good friends really struggling and the hardest realization for me was that I had no control over it. What I said wasn’t going to make their struggle go away but, maybe I could give them some helpful advice. So just listen, remind them that they are not alone, and most importantly remind that getting help does not make them weak because asking for help is half the battle.