”Anxiety is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear, that can be mild or severe.”

That’s the definition of anxiety according to the NHS.

Everybody feels anxious at some point, whether it be taking your first driving lesson, taking an exam or asking someone to be your other half. Having an anxiety disorder on the other hand is another thing. Anxiety can ruin a lot of great things.

When you have anxiety making or even keeping friends can be difficult, what if an anxiety attack over something stupid occurs? and for you without anxiety will you be fine with plans being cancelled because your friend is feeling too anxious?

A lot of things occur when feeling really anxious, everyone has different triggers and because of that, they may not tell you what they are because sometimes they don’t know why it’s happening in that moment. Recurrently when I feel anxious loud noises can trigger my anxiety, when I’m extremely tired my anxiety is easily set in motion and I’m bound to having crying spells. If that were happening to your friend, could you honestly say you would be there for them?

You physically can’t be at your friend’s aid every single time, it can get exhausting and it can take a toll on you, what is helpful is to be understanding. If your friend cancels last minute because of anxiety, can’t decide on something when they usually would, ask them if they need help. If they say they feel anxious ask them if they want to talk about it and if not distract them with conversation or something else. What you shouldn’t do is tell them they have nothing to worry about or ”Everyone gets stressed sometimes” It’s not the same, listen to your friend.

Having anxiety is hard but having people that don’t understand is even harder. If you don’t have anxiety you are bound to know or come across someone who does, you don’t need to do anything but just be a friend.