Fighting Anxiety as a Couple

I didn’t know of anyone who had faced anxiety on a serious level before I became struck with it myself. It was as if I had just entered a whole new world and I was the only one in it. Most of my friends and family members couldn’t really identify with what I was dealing with. Sure, they were very compassionate, listened, and even prayed with and for me, but they didn’t have the personal experience to really know what I was dealing with. So, I felt alone.

I have since learned that I was far from being alone in this battle. It is very ironic to me that, as isolating as anxiety can make you feel, 40 million Americans are reportedly affected by it each year (information found on http://adaa.org). That’s a lot of people that have been touched by anxiety! How can something that’s so common place make you feel so lonely and make you feel pegged as one those people who now “have it”? I believe it’s because it’s not talked about enough. There is a tendency within me that wants to just cover up the fact that I have struggled with it, but God has burdened me to speak up! God doesn’t want us being quiet about the testimonies He has given us or the work that He has done during the difficult moments of our lives. No, those are meant to be shared.

As large as 40 million people is, I actually believe that number is larger, because truth be told, when anxiety hits one person, its effects are usually felt by the other people in your home and in your life. I may have been the anxiety sufferer in our home, but it definitely touched the lives of those in my family as well, primarily my husband.

Because anxiety doesn’t just effect the person who is dealing with it, my husband and I desire to join together in a video (coming soon) discussing how God walked both of us through this time in our lives and how God faithfully worked in both of our hearts! We long to share words of truth and heartfelt encouragement because we know that it is needed!
If anxiety is present within your marriage, know that God can use something difficult like this and can build strength in your marriage and a greater dependence on Him!