1. It’s not your fault. WebMD says that genetics, brain chemistry, and outside events like stress and big changes can all lead to generalized anxiety disorder. Still, if you have anxiety, it’s easy to blame yourself for thinking too much. Take comfort in the fact that you are not responsible for how you feel. As one therapist put it, “anxiety is your brain hiccuping.” This has stuck with me ever since.

2. You’ve Made It Through Anxiety Attacks Before, And You Can Do It Again. It can feel like the end of the world when you think an anxiety attack is coming on. “If you have an anxiety attack, you will survive it like you have before.” This is something my husband often tells me when I need to feel better. You may feel powerless and scared during an attack, but those feelings will go away in the end.

3Just because you think or feel something doesn’t mean it’s true. When it comes to feelings, I’ve learned that I can’t always trust them. I’m sure that all of my loved ones are going to die in terrible, terrible ways on bad days. I always wonder if I should call the cops when I can’t reach someone to make sure they haven’t died in a car accident. That feeling is awful, but just because you have it doesn’t mean it’s real, even if your brain struggles to tell you otherwise.

4. Not everyone hates you. Since I’m always being hard on myself, it makes sense to my nervous mind that everyone else feels the same way about me. Someone once told me that I thought my husband married me because he felt sorry for me, which I thought was a pretty big lie. Stress can make us feel like no one cares about us, but that’s not always true.

5. It’s okay to mess up. HealthyPlace says that being a perfectionist can make you a great student and job, but it can also make you anxious. I used to cry every time I made a mistake at work or school, but years of therapy have helped me deal with that fear. You can make a mistake. It’s what everyone does.

6. It’s okay to take time off. You can take a break if you need to. I keep myself busy to block out my nervous thoughts, but I’ve experienced burnout more often than I’d like to admit. It’s okay if you’re feeling down and can’t finish a job or get through the day.

7. Good things are still coming your way. You still deserve good things, or as my therapist says, you should give yourself more credit. This is probably the most important lesson of all. You may feel like you’re a bad person and deserve to die alone because of your anxiety, but that’s not true. As bad as it is to live with an anxiety disease, things can get a little better once you learn how to do that.