Anxiety is one of those words that covers a wide spectrum of moods. Everyone may get a little bit anxious before a big event or something, but for other people capital-A Anxiety seriously affects their day-to-day existence.
One might think that if everyone feels anxious sometimes, that would make people more empathetic to those who struggle with it daily, but unfortunately it often leads to quite the opposite.
My specific vintage is Social Anxiety and Dissociative Disorder, which is a long way of saying that people are hard for me.
Even the teenager behind the counter at McDonalds can trigger me some days and I'm almost literally stuck in place by decision paralysis while my rational brain is disassociating itself in an attempt to escape the awkwardness.
Which is all the more irrational because I was that pimply teenager behind the McDonalds counter 15 years ago and I know they could not care less what I order as long as I'm clear and efficient about it.
When someone tells a person with anxiety to "calm down," "don't overthink it," "it's not that bad," it doesn't help, because the anxious person knows that. Pointing it out can actually make the issue worse.
So instead, try to understand what's causing the issue and help them take steps to move passed the specific trigger. Simply saying, "Isn't the Oreo McFlurry your favorite?" can break them from the paralysis spiral.
And Oreo is my favorite, FYI.
