Imagine a place where jealousy disappears like a morning fog, where anxiety dissolves into stars and insecurity travels back into the shadows. A place of no worries; a place of new beginnings; a place of endless possibilities and answers to what the world could be someday. Every day, humans conquer the common struggles of anxiety, stress, constant fear, and worries. Whether it’s what others think or personal views, this unbearing reality is a never-ending black hole. 

Scientifically, anxiety is defined as a trigger and reaction to the release of adrenaline from the adrenal glands. Like a constant storm of thoughts and questions that swirl relentlessly, anxiety controls a person’s every move. It makes their decisions, it controls their body, both physically and mentally. It makes people care. Care about how they think, how they act, and how they feel, it creates an identity of constant anxiousness. This build-up of thoughts is a common human experience. This biological consideration is a balance of judgment, jealousy, and acceptance.

Personally, this constant feeling is overwhelming. It controls me from when I wake up in the morning to when I finally go to bed at night. Constant questions revolving around my life, like planets orbiting around the sun. What will I wear? What will others think? Will they like these pants, or are they too baggy? Is this shirt too tight? Is it too big? Will I get made fun of? Or will they compliment it? Am I trying to seek validation? Or am I just trying to get through the day? How much effort should I put into my academics? What will others think? Will they think I’m trying too hard or not enough? What will my parents think of me? Will they be proud? Will they be disappointed? Will I be successful? What does my future hold? All these questions and all these thoughts are only two small roots of this larger problem. 

Soon enough, simple questions involve everything; past, present, and future. I sometimes wonder if these constant thoughts are something bigger. Is something wrong with me? Are these feelings normal? Why won’t this feeling go away? Eventually, these thoughts and feelings, internally and externally, build up, becoming so unbearable that exhaustion is heavily felt. They feel burnt out, unmotivated, and unwilling to do anything. Simple tasks, like getting dressed and going to school feel like punishment. If only the world was a place where this storm went away. 

According to the Mayo Clinic, there are many positives to having a relaxed mindset including lower rates of depression, reduced stress and pain, greater resistance to illness, and improved physical well-being. If the waves settled, and the sun came out. If the mind was relaxed and freed. If the body was relieved from tension and was ready to take action. If only people had fewer worries, had less care, and had less anxiety. If only this battle was finally over.