Anxiety was part of my life from the time I started school. It continued to hamper me throughout my teenage years, college and marriage. I felt inadequate, helpless and finally hopeless. When I first heard about Recovery International from a neighbor, I was barely functioning, but I read Mental Health Through Will-Training, which helped. However, after my fourth child was born, my anxiety became so severe that I required psychiatric help, including medication.

When I read a newspaper article about a Recovery International meeting near me, I made an effort to go. I was so impressed with what I learned that I attended additional meetings. I discovered that I was not alone and that my helplessness did not mean I was hopeless.

Because of my Recovery International training, I began using my muscles to do what I feared and hated to do. I also learned to trust my basic functions and to take the total view of myself. Consequently, I could see my accomplishments as well as my failures. Thanks to Recovery International, life is worth living again. I am now a grandmother and have retired after working for the previous 25 years. I still attend meetings and do whatever possible to promote our organization.

Lana MacKellar