I fully believe our struggles define who we are and what we will become. My anxiety disorder has been a factor in my life ever since I was a child but it was always unknown, just something I believed to be normal. I knew I was anxious but I never knew why. As a child, I was always the kid that just “didn’t come out of her shell yet” and then during middle school, I realized something was wrong when I couldn’t get to school in the morning and panic attacks came daily. I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, this relieved and terrified me at the same time. I can recall the first session of therapy I ever went to, my therapist, Jill, told me something that has stuck with me and been my motivation to this day. “There are only 2 ways this can go, you can simply let this disorder take over every aspect of your life or you can choose to accept the disorder and be the one in control.” …show more content…
Through music I learned how to break out of my shell and by doing that, people got to see who I actually was which then brought lifelong friends into my life. Auditioning for musical theatre as well as the school acapella group, Strawberry Fields, brought a huge deal of anxiety and panic but I learned how to transform that nervousness into excitement. Strawberry Fields brought me and is still bringing me a source of happiness that I couldn’t find anywhere else, a rush I couldn’t find anywhere else. The stage soon became my home which surprised me a great deal, to this day my safe place is on stage. The experiences these groups have allowed me to have really changed me, I realized that my anxiety became easier to turn into a positive thing. I also realized a lot of my dear friends going through tough times as well and seeing that I realized I would spread positivity and help for people going through things similar to me. I spread the message of taking control of your own