Thread:Merrimack/@comment-28320783-20160705173029/@comment-32738051-20160706015930

You're very welcome and, thank you, I am well. Yesterday was a nice holiday but now I'm getting back into the swing of normal life again. 😊

I hope you are as well as can be expected. I know you have tough swings with your anxiety. But I've been reading through more of the encouraging posts here and I hope you're getting some really great feel goods from all of it to help counter balance some of the bad moments. You've talked about how you wish you were stronger and that you feel you can't get through this. But you're wrong about this...you can get through it and you are stronger than you think. It takes incredible bravery to be as open as you have been with all of us and to accept all the help being offered. It also takes incredible strength to seek financial help through sites like GoFundMe and through the charities. Many would not be able to do what you have already done. You just need to keep plugging away at it and work on getting through it all one task at a time...take baby steps...it will all get done eventually and, if you pace yourself, it will lessen your anxiety.

I responded to your 3 most recent emails...hopefully you saw my replies. You're pretty much done with the GoFundMe posting but now you need to get the word out to more places than just here on the Wiki and I shared some thoughts about that but let me know if you have any questions. I did mention for you to encourage those with whom you share the campaign link to share it with others they know. The more you can get others to get the word out for you, the less promoting you will have to do and I know that will be better for your anxiety. What I forgot to mention is that once you post the link in each place initially (here, on Facebook and wherever else) you'll have to post it again later (perhaps with updates)so it's always fresh in others' minds. Many people will fail to respond to, maybe even fail to read, your story the first time you get the word out and subsequent posts will help you remind them to check it out if they haven't already (and to remind others with whom they have shared the link). I realize that will also be tough for you but it's just something you will have to do in order to get enough responses. And I know you can do it.

You've had some really great suggestions from a lot of people, most recently Betty's post on your wall. She's right and I also believe you could take a work from home job, though as she said probably not right away. Even though the extra income would be great for your family, you may find it challenging now not only to get such a job but also to work through your anxiety to do the work, since many work from home positions involve heavy communications (verbal and/or written). The more you communicate verbally and online now as you work through your current situation, the more you will be preparing yourself to handle both the job search and the job once you get one. I hope you consider it when you're ready.

In the meantime, I had another thought that might be good for you. I've known many people who have tried their hand at fan fiction. If you're not familiar with it, it is when there is a game or a TV show or a movie (or series) or a book (or series) for which some fans also write their own original stories set within the world(s) in question, often involving at least some pre-existing characters. If there is something you're a fan of and you can come up with some ideas for things you've wanted incorporated but no one has yet, you might try your hand at writing some fanfic...it could help you improve your writing skills as well as help you strengthen your confidence and fortitude while lessening your anxiety. It can also help prepare you for a works from home job later on. My sister tried her hand at it. Before she did, she didn't think she had any creativity in her at all. But she was good at it...she had a real flare for it. You won't get paid for it but that's OK because that actually takes some of the pressure off...you'll be doing it just for you and for fun if you try it. And you may find, like my sister that you have a talent for it...maybe even get good enough to write something completely original that you could get published and paid for eventually. You never know...unless you try.

And if creative writing isn't for you, maybe you could do beta testing. If you're not familiar, it's where a company, usually a game developer, has people test their product (game, software, etc.) and let them know what doesn't work like it should (often bugs in software). They also test usability and appeal and suggest changes to improve the product. It's most likely going to be unpaid work but it would be work from home and you can build skills doing it.

In any case, keep your chin up and just keep plugging away at improving your finances, your health and your situation. One little step at a time. You'll get through it all. 😍 🏆