Seriously?

The people in Princess Georgia's village are scared of a dragon that lives in a nearby forest. People build tall walls of stone, and strong, shiny armor to protect themselves. People sharpen swords, and invent traps and cages to help fight the dragon.

It has also been said that anxiety, is a natural defense mechanism. I dislike that theory. When humans face danger our bodies are supposed to go through physical changes to help us cope. 'Everyone experiences anxiety in some degree'. Apparently.

A racing heart helps deliver oxygen throughout the body quicker, blood is redirected to larger, more important muscles and organs, leaving the stomach feeling nauseous, our muscles tense up to prepare us to 'fight or flight', and we sweat in order to cool our bodies naturally, and become slipperier for a predator to catch us.

Sure! That makes perfect sense if Princess Georgia gets lost while hunting for rare flowers in the forest and stumbles across the dragon's den! The dragon is huge, and strong, and breathes fire for goodness sake! But Princess Georgia has been too often left to wonder why the HECK she needs to be tense and slippery when all she's doing is sitting in her bed trying desperately to get some sleep.

The teacher of my Panic and Anxiety class says to picture ourselves in a car wreck and having to save injured patrons, or on a hike and coming face to face with a big angry bear. "Can you see why what we see as symptoms, can actually be used as tools to save our lives?'" Perhaps. But forgive me for saying, I'd WAY rather be forced to wrestle a Grizzly right now (or a great white shark..or an alligator/lion super hybrid species with eight legs a scorpion tail, a trunk that spits out poisonous darts, and 3 stomachs!) , then be left helpless in the safety of my own home, having to beat off this dizziness and over-heating, and the shakes, and the fear of having to run to the toilet. If doing so meant no more cramps, or sleepless nights, gasping for breath, or moments wasted in a public bathroom stall instead of enjoying a dinner party..I'd say 'BRING ON THE BEAR, BITCH!'

Princess Georgia could battle a big, scaly dragon just as well as any knight in shining armor. The Anxiety Monster however, is still a whole other story! It doesn't breathe fire or eat trespassing villagers for breakfast, but it does make the Princess fight for her life. Or her sanity, at least.