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A is for anxiety.

Anxiety manifests as anger and aloofness and alarming sadness.

(A is also for alliteration)

Anxiety is to be expected when your cat is dying, your bank account is empty, your credit card won’t work, and your debit card has been stolen.

But one of the worst things about anxiety is how it makes you feel bad for being anxious. Why should you feel so bad when other people could handle this better, perhaps in stride?

When you feel bad about feeling anxious, you don’t want to let people know that you’re experiencing anxiety. By the time I’ve made it to sadness, I’ve found myself so overcome by anxiety that I cannot hide it, even if I want to. If you see it, I’ve been struggling for a while and I didn’t want to or couldn’t reach out. It comes out because if it doesn’t, it feels like I will burst. Keeping it inside prevents me from eating, sleepy, and certainly thinking clearly.

Anxiety is not helped by those who tell you to relax or repeat platitudes like “It will all be okay,” especially when the issues are guaranteed to have a negative ending. Anxiety eases with time, with medication, with meditation, with a good sleep, with the resolution or lessening of those problems. And while just getting it out doesn’t necessary decrease anxiety, it’s easier to bear the load with a few shoulders to help.

Three weeks ago, I took Phantom into the vet because he was sick. I received a surprising diagnosis, one that was fatal and one that, fortunately, has been somewhat reduced. He may not longer be on death’s door, but he’s still sick. I still have to administer medicine. And while I don’t have to watch his every move because this might be ‘it,’ the moment that I need to humanely end his life, it’s hard not to.

I spent that first week basically unable to do anything — eat, sleep, work, breathe. The anxiety and stress was oppressively heavy. Anyone who talked to or saw me was witness to that. And while things are no longer as dire, it feels as though the wool has been lifted from my eyes. There’s something wrong in my life that I am now painfully aware of, and I can’t forget it. Even if I could, I need to be alert for Phantom’s sake.

Of course, anyone might be a little stressed over this, but I’m already anxious to begin with. And that something so small as a the health of a pet has me spiraling so far downward makes me feel incompetent, like a failure. Every time Phantom refuses a pill, I wonder why I can’t be better at such a small thing.

I’ve fill a lot of the last three weeks with TV shows, just some noise to keep on in the background. There’s not much else to do when the weather has me trapped inside.

But I can’t use this time productively. It takes me longer to get around to do chores or run errands. My Christmas tree is still up. Laundry has piled up on my bed. All of my blogs are forgotten. I’ve forgotten about games that need to be finished. I’ve managed to finish a single book, but many others have languished. My kitchen table has accumulated an embarrassing amount of mail, trash, and empty shopping bags.

I could invite people over to while away some of the time — if only I wasn’t so ashamed of the state of my apartment.

And maybe it’s not that bad. Maybe it’s in my head. Maybe it’s just my anxiety making me feel like everything is worse than it is, you know, the way it does. But that’s one more thing to feel bad about.

Perhaps in time I’ll forget about some of the things that are bothering me just like I occasionally forget about my own mortality and impending death. The feeling of despair will only wash over me and settle in the pit of my stomach briefly before I am able to push it back, to deny that it bothers me.

Or maybe I need a better coping mechanism to deal with life.

I have a few, somewhat scattered thoughts, none of which is long enough to dedicate an entire blog post but each of which has lingered long enough that perhaps I should write something about them. So here goes.

The first was triggered by this post on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/yrfatfriend/status/1038933769690861568

I replied an entire thread worth of thoughts. But it basically boils down to:

• I’d be physically more comfortable, both by myself and around others.
• I’d feel less compelled to overcompensate for how I look in other ways (ie clothes, makeup, and hair).
• I’d have more confidence in the dating realm.

But there was one thing — an absolutely huge thing — that I forgot; I would view women, especially thin women, less as competition. I would judge them less harshly and experience fewer bitter thoughts.

These are not trivial matters. Nor are they fleeting. These are lifelong issues with which I’ve struggled, and they’ve colored my entire worldview. It’s significant.. and sad. it is also hopefully something I can work through in time (and I have made progress).

Another thought bouncing around my head is how is how anxiety is experienced so differently by others. I’ll admit, this is something I’ve been thinking about for some time, ever since I commented on a blog and the blogger responded quite negatively. She was expressing her anxiety and vulnerability, and I thought we could bond over my similar anxiety. I remarked on a coping strategy, which she took as criticism, no doubt because of how her anxiety manifests.

It’s somewhat ironic that this interaction has left me with such anxiety. The blogger in question is a person who I admire and who, in some respects, I think I could get along with well. While I thought it was a sure thought that leading with how my anxiety affected me in similar situations would serve as a connection point, I was wrong.

Aside from that, I’ve been considering how easy it is to be impatient when people react in certain ways due to their anxiety even though I am no stranger to anxiety myself. I suppose it’s easier to ask for others to be patient than it is to dole out patience myself.

Patience is something that’s been on my mind a lot recently. I do not find myself particularly patient with some friends and family, and my shortage highlights the fact that the only way I get through/survive these relationships is by expressing an exorbitant amount of patience. I always feel disappointed in myself during times when I feel unable to come through with patience. But perhaps I need to re-examine why I continue with these relationships if they’re such a trial, to begin with?

Finally, I’ve been thinking a lot about locations. My trip to Seattle reminded me how much I like bigger cities — places where restaurants are in abundance and open late, where Sunday doesn’t equate to closed, and where public transportation is an option worth considering. These conveniences were some of the things I really liked about living in Milwaukee. I enjoy how “metropolitan” I feel when I am in these places and doing the things that seem less out of place in them.

A few years ago, I was considering buying a house here. Now,  I am so glad that I didn’t. I am not sure where I want to go, but I am almost certain that I must leave, and my recent trip was a reminder of that.

So, there you are.

I thought. I blogged. I conquered?

Today was a day full of things that made me laugh, smile and sing. And, perhaps more importantly, it was a day when I was able to look back and see those things, to recognize and appreciate and be happy.

I will breathe deeply and happily as I go to sleep tonight. And while that won’t be for a little bit despite being 4 in the morning, that’s okay!

A very nice cashier at CVS commented on how pretty I looked/nicely I was dressed. I stocked up on all the delicious food, replaced my shorted-out headphones and scored some neat-looking nail polish.

A quick trip to the mall filled my belly and my bag with free VS panties.

Several hours of Cards Against Humanity and laughter later, I felt less alone, more connected and lighter-hearted than I have in days. Weeks. A month?

I signed on to facebook to see Reviews by Cole had finally hit 4800. Then enjoyed a delicious dinner, perhaps a bit too late. Oops!

I finally am making some money on Izea.

And have you checked out my Sverve score?!

I made plans to see Guardians of the Galaxy again! Because it is awesome!

I feel more clear about the things I need to do for me, but now I am sure that these are things I can do. What’s more, I’ve realized that I do have more goals than I realize and more time in which to complete them.

I’ve turned helpless frustration and anger into a plan on which I can act. I’ve let go of anger and replaced it with love.

I will now enjoy some Parks and Recreation while playing on my phone.

Score!

I am in a particularly good mood today. Perhaps it’s this crazy weather, but it also has to do with the fact that I just came home from the dentist.  I was in a good mood the last time I came home from a checkup.

for the most part, my appointments have gone quicker and easier than expected, but there’s something else that I like about the dentist. As I sit there in the chair with nothing to do, I just focus on my breathing and relaxation. This sort of forced relaxed is why I like some roller coasters/carnival rides. There’s nothing I can do in the situation. You sit still until it’s over, so you might as well relax.

In some ways, I’ve spent the last week doing the same. I guess I’m the kind of person who comes down with a terrible cold in the middle of July. My head wasn’t in the game, so I definitely took it easy when it came to work. I did what I could,  but I wasn’t writing as much as usual.

To be honest? I needed that. I spent a lot of time sleeping to feel better (I’m still not back at 100%). I stayed home and watched a ton of Stargate: SG-1. And I didn’t feel amazing, but I certainly felt less anxious.

That’s why I’m writing this. Because I have nothing else to do ( Okay, I should be writing a few reviews). I don’t have to be writing this. So I feel more inspiration to write a blog post, even if I’m only telling you that I’m a freak who likes the dentist and being sick. LOL