Your reminder: Don’t let your anxiety or bipolar...

Your reminder: Don’t let your anxiety or bipolar deceive you.

My story:

"Be careful,” my friend called out to me as I was walking out her front door. I was a few days into a new life in Tennessee.

“Um, okay,” I called back.

It seemed strange to me, a young man raised in central Wisconsin, for my new southern friend to tell me to be careful.

I was only driving two miles home. It was late, so there would be almost no traffic on my small town’s streets.

What I didn’t know then was that my friend’s words had nothing to do with my driving habits.

My family is not physically affectionate. I remember my dad hugging me once in my teens, and once more in my early twenties, when I left home. Things with my mom were similar.

I knew my parents loved me. There was always a roof over my head, food to eat, and clothing to wear.

Expressing love with words or touch was not something my midwestern family did.

But then, life changed me.

In school, I struggled when I became friends with a group who were huggers. They liked to hug hello and goodbye - all the time.

All the physical contact was a huge change for me, but in time, I learned to enjoy it.

Jump forward a few years, and the South is full of huggers. Men, women, children — it doesn’t matter. Hugging is part of daily life. You hug to say hello, nice to meet you, goodbye, or I’m proud of you.

Sometimes you hug for no reason at all.

I realized when someone said, “Be careful,” it had nothing to do with driving safely. It’s an expression of affection, another way to say, "I love you."

It opened my eyes to some other ways that others might say, “I love you,” without using the words: a text, a touch, a friendly smile.

People love you even if they're not saying it.

I still struggle with telling people I love them.

Thanks to mental illness, there are days when hugging someone is nearly impossible. There are no kind words on those days.

Even so, I hope my family and friends know how much I do love them. If I haven’t said it lately, here are the words.

I love you.

All of you.

Until next time, keep fighting.

#positivevibes #bipolar #anxiety #mentalhealth #love