If a family member or friend you know is struggling with anxiety, here are a few useful tips you can use to aid them.
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Educate yourself… It will be a lot easier to help your friend and/or family members out by actually learning about the disorder instead of blindly advising them. Take the time to educate yourself on the meaning of anxiety. While you may not be a medically trained professional, knowing the basics of what anxiety is and how it feels is still useful.
- Ask them questions… Ask her or him how you can help them and actually listen to their response. Don’t just do what you think might be best for them at first. Sometimes all people need is to share their feelings, emotions, and ideas.
- Motivate for treatment… Encourage them to seek professional treatment, as there is only so much you can do. Offer to drive them to their appointments or offer to go to a therapy session with them.
- Be patient and optimistic… Know that everyone goes through and handles anxiety in their own way and that not everyone’s experiences will be the same. So because you might have known someone with anxiety doesn’t mean that someone else will have the exact same reasoning or symptoms. Be patient with their process and celebrate every accomplishment they make, big or small. Be optimistic and emit positive energy. After all, being negative only causes you both to have more anxiety.
Written by Vayda Ottis
My daughter has anxiety. Thank you for these tips on helping her. I want to make sure and find her the best therapist.