Anxiety disorders are the most common form of mental illness in America, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. The condition affects 40 million adults in the United States. That’s 18 percent of the U.S. population.

Despite this, people with anxiety disorders still live with a stigma often associated with invisible conditions. So we asked our readers with anxiety what they wished the world could understand about it. This is what they had to say.

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2. “I might look like I’m doing nothing, but in my head I’m quite busy.” — Diane Kim

4. “It’s [debilitating].” — Marlene Pickering

10. “I

12. “Even though we look OK on the outside, our anxiety is wreaking havoc on our insides.” — Cynthia Adams McGrath

13. “I’m being attacked by something I can’t escape from.”

14. “No matter how irrational I may sound, it’s real to me.” — Lorri Smith

22. “Just because I can’t explain the feelings causing my anxiety, doesn’t make them less valid.” — Lauren Elizabeth

23. “I’m not crazy.” — Peggy Hess

25. “E

26. “It’s uncontrollable.” — Asia Pope

29. “I’m not doing it for attention.” — Georgia Tsaganis Johnson

What would you add? Tell us in the comments below.

*Some answers have been shortened and/or edited.

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