Jan. 15, 2024

I know a kid — a really cool kid — who struggles with big feelings. This kiddo gets a big ol’ knot in their gut, lots of times for no good reason. It’s just there.

Worry Belly.

That’s what they call it. It’s a good name. I connect with that kid in a big way. I’ve had Worry Belly every day for almost 40 years. I have a lot of grown up friends who deal with Worry Belly, too. Except we have a scary, technical, adult name for it.

Anxiety.

Anxiety sucks. It’s had me on edge this whole long weekend. It’s kept me from doing things I wanted to do. It’s made me feel sad even when I’ve been doing perfectly lovely things like snuggling with my dog, watching old episodes of Newhart, and reading comic books.

There’s a guilty comfort that comes from knowing other people in my life deal with anxiety too. (Not the kids, though; my heart just breaks that kids have to encounter anxiety in any form.) Comfort because I know I’m not alone. Guilt because I feel bad, finding comfort in knowing that people I love and care about feel the same bad things I do.

On her 2018 album, Golden Hour, Kacey Musgraves does a beautiful job capturing the conflicting sensations that accompany anxiety with the song Happy & Sad.

If you’re dealing with Worry Belly tonight, I hope you can find a way to get yourself grounded, sense the world around you, and try to take charge of your feelings.

Remind your Worry Belly that you are the boss of it. Not the other way around.

And I’m the kind of person

Who starts getting kinda nervous

When I’m having the time of my life