LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) -- As the world becomes a more accepting place to talk about mental health, there’s one disorder, in particular, that more than doubles the second-place diagnosis.

In tonight’s Dial Dalfred report, we learn about one man’s struggles with anxiety, and a few healthy ways to cope.

Meet Chad Robertson. He’s a thirty plus year old Lafayette man and on the surface, he’s passionate, comical, and God-fearing, but he struggles with an anxiety that has made things difficult for him in the workplace.

“I’m a strong young man. It’s just that I’ve been beaten up so much all my life, it’s hard to consistently keep a job,” said Robertson.

While Chad recognizes his struggles, he’s not alone. According to the American Psychological Association, up to 30% of adults experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives.

Casey Potier is a licensed master social worker, who talked to us a little bit about anxiety.

"Anxiety is something we all have as an emotional response and is a normal reaction to stress," said Potier." Anxiety refers to anticipating a future concern and is more associated with worried thoughts and physical changes like muscle tension and of one’s behaviors", but even he gets anxious and nervous; like during his first televised interview."

I asked Potier, how does somebody like him, who helps people deal with anxiety, deal with an anxious in a situation like this one, and what coping mechanisms does he use.

"In situations like this, where it would be stressful, I ground myself in the present, deep breathing, preparation— making sure I know what I’m going to be talking about or doing helps me to stay in the present and not get lost in the future. Anxiety is worry. Worry about fear or things coming in the future that we have no control over," said Potier

So, we wanted to know how can someone who finds themselves in a high pressure or overwhelming situation calm themselves and make it to the other side of an anxiety attack?

"I would encourage you to just ground yourself there; look around the room and in great detail describe to yourself what you see: the color of the wall, what the color of the furniture is, what do you see that looks different or something you put there, what does the room smell like, what sounds do you hear. In doing that, you distract your thinking from the worried thoughts that it was trying to focus on and actually just allow you to bring yourself to the present and calm down," said Potier.

Circling back to Mr. Robertson, he’s employed, once again, but also looking forward to opening his business, Breaking the Barrier Consulting, to help young men deal with their anxious thoughts, reach their true potential, and become productive members of society. If there’s an ongoing issue in your neighborhood or community and you need me to investigate, or you have a story idea, send me an email to DialDalfred@klfy.com.

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