When Anxiety Becomes an Illness
Anxiety serves a useful purpose…until it doesn’t.
Disorders, Syndromes, and Illnesses, Oh My!
In recent times, it seems that there has been a proliferation of labels and changes of classification for states of mind or manners of behavior that were previously considered personal weaknesses. Addiction, anxiety, depression, hyperactivity, etc.
I see the increased understanding and labeling of these conditions as a huge step forward.
I do understand that some people are skeptical about the propagation of classifications. At least anecdotally I have heard people grumble about what they see as labeling every aspect of the human condition as an illness and thinking that many of these conditions are indeed merely personal weaknesses.
Here I address one of them: anxiety, and declare via my personal experience that anxiety run amok is indeed a debilitating, currently incurable (but manageable) illness.
It ruins lives, destroys relationships, and, at best, exhausts and sucks the joy out of life.
Note: I am not a doctor and I am absolutely not offering medical advice. Rather, I am offering empathy and sharing my experience. 
