Anxiety is a beast and it affects So. Many. People. If you’re here then I’m assuming you or someone you love falls into that category. First – I’m sorry. It’s hard. I see you. You are welcome here.

**Disclaimer: I’m not a doctor or counselor of any sort, this is just information based on my personal experiences, please seek the support of a qualified professional**

If you are a Christian there is something I want to get out of the way right now. You cannot “try harder at your faith” to fix your anxiety. You cannot “be a better Christian” and get over it. Yes, I fully believe that Jesus could take your anxiety away – but I also believe sometimes we have to walk through hard things. Sometimes because He is teaching you something, sometimes just because we live in a fallen world. So please hear me – there is nothing wrong with your faith. Prayer, verse memory, fellowship, daily time on the Word – these are all important aspects of our walk of faith but having anxiety does not mean you are failing in any of them. Yes, they can help you, but please don’t think you need to “try harder” at your faith to be healed. If anyone has made you feel like your faith was lacking because of your anxiety, I’m sorry. It sucks. It’s wrong. Your worth isn’t found in that statement (something I’m still working through with my Biblical counselor).

A little of my story…

I’m pretty sure that I’ve dealt with anxiety in some form since I was a small child and I think for a few reasons. The first is I’m a highly sensitive person, always have been. I feel emotions deeply and I feel other people’s emotions deeply. The second is that I was on a low dose antibiotic for a year of my life as a young child. Can we say “goodbye gut health”? It was to deal with a chronic issue that I was dealing with. In hindsight, I don’t fault my parents for it at all, I know they were doing what they thought was best from doctor’s advice. I’m so thankful that gut health is being talked about now in relation to mental health. I think it makes a big difference, but again, isn’t the end all be all either. There are so many pieces…

In elementary to high school I was overly concerned about academics. I definitely tied my self-worth to how I did. Once college hit, I had a bit of an identity crisis that I’m still working through. Academics mattered but not like before and when I started doing poorly in a class I tried to avoid it for a bit and then scrambled to fix it before the end of the semester. I also had multiple experiences of people I respected in my faith absolutely tearing me to shreds with their words and actions. Obviously I’m keeping this vague for a reason, but let’s just say it completely changed the way I viewed myself and my faith. “If I wasn’t good enough for them, why even try?” Dangerous thoughts while in college and the world was vying for my allegiance. This led to a whole host of bad life choices.

Fast forward to after graduation. I took a job in a different state and was in an awful relationship. Being isolated from family and friends was hard. My anxiety skyrocketed that first year. I was put on anxiety meds and I hated them. They made me feel like I had no emotions. Eventually, I did go off of them. Then I just self-medicated with alcohol. Not a good plan either. When that relationship ended and I decided to move back home things got so much better.

About a year later, my life looked so different. I had moved back home (and yes, in with my parents for a short while) started dating my future husband and had two of my dream jobs. We got married in 2020, the weekend before shutdowns started. We didn’t get a honeymoon, but I’m so thankful we were able to have a wedding. A year later, we were pregnant with our first son. Man, being pregnant through the uncertainty of 2021 was hard. So many different view on what was happening and our extended family did not agree with how we chose to handle it. We denied the vaccine- there were (and still are!) just too many unknowns about it and especially while pregnant, we weren’t going to take the risk. Our first son was born via emergency c section that caused A LOT of birth trauma (a story for another day), and we eventually had to switch to formula for him – which absolutely broke my heart. Of course, this was during the formula “shortage”. All these things just added to my anxiety. I was later diagnosed with Postpartum Anxiety and put on medication. I even had to quit my job. I just could not function. The panic attacks were awful and each day was a struggle of its own. We got pregnant with our second son in 2023 and I was terrified that the anxiety would go back to how it was or worse. His pregnancy had a whole host of complications and he ended up being delivered early – after an ambulance ride to the next town. That postpartum era was actually much better. Then in 2025 – we lost my mom. The week after her funeral we found out we were pregnant with our third boy. His pregnancy was the hardest. I was hospitalized twice in the first trimester with extreme hyperemisis gravidum. I lost 25 lbs in 6 weeks. I did not look good. He also started trying to make his appearance starting at week 20. We eventually had to travel to the town with the nearest NICU (4 hours away) because they were concerned he was coming early and that I could possibly have a uterine rupture with all these things contractions. Our older boys stayed with family and friends while my husband and I went down. Just a couple days after we arrived and got situated with new doctors and the Ronald McDonald House baby came. He came early enough that he went straight to the NICU for a month. Hellooo anxiety. Thankfully now (7 months later) he’s doing so well and I’m once again weaning off my anxiety meds. If you’ve hung with me this long – thanks! I share all this to say, I get it.

If I could share with you what I’d do to support your mental health – this is it:

1- Find a Biblical counselor. I adore mine. She is a treasure as I work through all of this. It is so important to find a Biblical one! Being able to talk about scripture and all the things is huge. Hearing her talk about praying for me is priceless. Plus, if I’m spending time with someone working through my anxiety I want it to be someone who knows the truth of God’s word.

2- Cut out the junk. Caffeine, sugar, seed oils, alcohol, processed foods, wheat, They will only make your anxiety worse. While it’s hard to break those habits, I promise you, it’s worth it. Check out the book “Wheat Belly” by William Davis, MD. It is eye-opening.

3- See a naturopath! This one is huge! We are seeing https://www.countrydoctorclinic.com/ and he is helping to support my neurological system and general health.

4- Get involved in your faith community! Being part of a church, a small group, a Sunday school is so important for our mental and spiritual health. Jesus did not intend for us to do life alone. Now a word of caution. I believe the majority of people you interact with in Christian circles honestly want to love and support you. However. I would still advise you to use discretion on who you share your heart and struggles with. Make sure that they are going to respect you and that information. Christians are still flawed, sinful humans.

5- Read books that are helpful. I have read “Peace” by Becky Thompson multiple times. Especially if you’re a mama – read this one! I’ve just started “The Lie You Don’t Know You Believe” by Jennie Allen. It is so good too.

6- Seek help from your medical doctor. There is a time and a place for medicine. I’ve been on it for years and am just now stepping off of it with my doctor’s support. There is nothing unholy or sinful about medication used at the proper time in the proper way. Don’t think it makes you “less-than” for needing meds. I would just advise that it isn’t the only thing you do – but that’s just my opinion.