Three Anxiety Myths That Actually Hurt You
Between 15 and 20 percent of people are born with a sensitivity that intensifies what they feel, and that is not a lack of faith.
In an article in RELEVANT Magazine, pastor Jason Cusick dismantles three myths about anxiety. He says he has had it all his life and that he only began to understand it after an intentional time of counseling.
Cusick is the lead pastor of a church with several campuses in Southern California and author of The Highly Sensitive Christian, from which this article is an excerpt. He cites research on highly sensitive people: between 15 and 20 percent would have an innate sensitivity that makes them feel more deeply.
The myth that you lack faith
Cusick describes anxiety as the body's natural response to a threat. According to him, God made us with reflexes to fight, flee, freeze, or please. There is a good anxiety, the one that wakes you up when something happens, and a bad one, the one that does not turn off and limits your life.
«Not everything is sin nor everything is chemistry; the body and the soul go together, and God is Lord of both.»
Here he gets something right that many young Hispanics need to hear. Performing for the family, translating for your parents, carrying expectations, and smiling on Sunday is exhausting. And when you finally say it, someone answers "you just lack faith." That does not comfort; it adds weight.
Scripture does not promise a life without fear, it promises company: "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit" (Psalm 34:18, ESV).
I would nuance one thing: recognizing that anxiety has biological causes does not erase our responsibility. Not everything is sin nor everything is chemistry; the body and the soul go together, and God is Lord of both.
Avoiding what you fear trains fear
Cusick argues that avoidance feeds anxiety. The brain learns all the time, almost always below the surface: if you flee, you teach it to keep being afraid. Facing it little by little retrains the nervous system. Neuroscientists call it neuroplasticity, and the process, habituation. As a child he panicked in a pool; with repeated classes, his reaction changed.
It is the most useful part of the article, if read carefully. It is not an invitation to throw yourself alone into what terrifies you nor a promise that in a few weeks you will be fine. It is a slow process, and it often needs company: a counselor, a therapist, a doctor.
There is a step you can take today. Cusick repeats a simple idea: not everything you think is true, so observe what you feel before believing it. He sums it up this way: "My feelings are real, but they may not be true" (translation by Sígueme). He also suggests looking at the small moments of safety, something that connects with "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure" (Philippians 4:8, ESV).
The myth that God owes you certainty
The third myth is treating prayer like a machine for sure answers. Cusick explains that anxiety is, at bottom, a low tolerance for uncertainty. We seek certainties and they rarely deliver: even when they come, the anguish can stay.
I believe the most pastoral point is here. We pray for a map and God responds with a presence. Faith coexists with open questions, with decisions we do not control, and with people who will not love us as we would like. Cusick proposes accepting mystery as part of life with God. It seems honest to me: biblical peace does not depend on having everything resolved.
What do you do this week? Name a trusted person—an adult in your family, your pastor, a mental health professional—and tell them what you feel, in clear words. If anguish takes away your sleep, appetite, or studies, seek professional help soon; in a crisis, go to your country's emergency services. Carrying this alone was never God's plan. Who are you going to tell what you feel?
