Anxiety can be a crippling condition to manage, especially as a parent because you're always "on." If things start to go pear-shaped right at dinner time, it's not like you can walk away and leave your hungry kids screaming, while you try and do some mindfulness meditation. Thank goodness there are plenty of ways every grown-ass man supports a partner with anxiety. Ways that can prevent you from bottling it all in long enough that you end up with heart palpitations in the middle of the night.
I've always been a "worrier," but it wasn't until I had children that my anxiety truly reared its ugly head. It's amazing how creative your mind can be at imagining all the ways your children could potentially die or get hurt. My intrusive thoughts went completely off the rails by the time of my second pregnancy, and I would be paralyzed with anxiety, trying to take my daughter out of the house. Thankfully I had a partner who understands anxiety well, and was able to support me through it. He was the grown-ass man every mom with anxiety needs as a partner. Of course, a partner doesn't have to be a cisgender male in order to be supportive. Gender, to be clear, has absolutely nothing to do with it. However, when your partner is a cisgender male and can't possibly experience what it's like to go through pregnancy, labor, delivery, have a child and suffer from anxiety, it's pivotal that they can and are willing to help. Knowing that you're understood, even when someone can't understand, truly makes a difference.
I can't imagine living with a partner who doesn't understand and support my anxiety. Knowledge is power, folks, so here are 10 ways every grown-ass man supports a partner with anxiety: