If you live with any amount of anxiety, chances are you don't think of it as beneficial. After all, anxiety has many unpleasant symptoms and negatively impacts our entire being--thoughts, emotions, bodily sensations, and behaviors. Anxiety most definitely gets in the way of our ability to create and live our lives. Yet anxiety offers some positives and in some ways can be an asset to our lives. Here are three surprising benefits of anxiety to consider so you can use this nuisance to your advantage.

Anxiety has many nasty effects, one of which can be making us too nice or too passive. I'm guilty of this. While I do consider myself to be genuinely kind and considerate, I often take this characteristic a bit too far, putting my own thoughts and emotions aside and even altering my actions for the sake of others. If you find yourself doing much more giving and very little "taking," read on for a look at how anxiety can make us too passive and a few tips on how to begin the process of picking yourself up off the doorstep of life.

It’s the middle of the summertime, and every day is hot and humid. I hate this time of year; I find this kind of weather so anxiety-provoking and draining.

It's natural to wonder how to protest if you have anxiety. The protests resonate with us, but it's difficult to go out and raise your voice in solidarity when you live with anxiety.

I've survived a catastrophe, and I've learned to cope with the anxiety from it. You see, a few weeks ago, a major fire started in my apartment. In the aftermath, I lost my place to live, lost almost all my possessions due to smoke damage, and came uncomfortably close to losing my life from smoke inhalation.

Practicing mental yoga can help reduce anxiety because it builds psychological flexibility. Mental yoga isn't a formal practice with certain poses and movements; instead, it's a way of thinking, feeling, and behaving--a way of being, of living. Just as yoga increases physical flexibility (among other things), mental yoga increases psychological flexibility. As you practice, you can free yourself from anxiety. 

Gun control is a hot topic. When online, I generally avoid political discussions. Because so many of them are so prone to devolve into toxic shouting matches, I find it healthier to stay away. Today, however, I’m diving in headfirst. The country is still reeling in the aftermath of the shootings in El Paso and Dayton, and quite frankly, I’m pissed off. Once again, a certain segment of the population is refusing to budge on any meaningful discussion concerning gun control, and I’m just sick of it. If we don’t have meaningful action on gun control, this country is going to drown in anxiety.

Learned helplessness is a psychological concept I’ve been familiar with for a while, but had never, until recently, thought to apply it to anxiety. It is most commonly framed in terms of depression, but as I’ve given it more thought, the concept can very easily be carried over to anxiety and may provide insight as to why it can be so difficult to pick yourself up when things get really bad.

What are the effects of anxiety? Many people are familiar with anxiety; indeed, "anxiety" has become a common household word, and for good reason. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in 2015 that almost 265 million people worldwide lived with an anxiety disorder. This figure doesn't include all the people who experience anxiety but not as a diagnosable disorder. Yet despite its prevalence, anxiety can be hard to describe and can leave people wondering if what they're feeling is anxiety or something else. Anxiety is a mental health condition with many effects. Here's a look at what anxiety is based on its effects. 

We need mental health care now. I’m done mincing words and I’m done being polite about this. People are literally dying every day because they aren’t being given the help they need. Every day we wait, every day we don’t act, is another day someone will take his or her own life. And that person's blood will be on our hands for doing nothing.