This book is about my life. It is a compilation of the inner wisdom that I have found in going through and learning to live with and manage the fears, negative thoughts, and emotional struggles that I have known since my childhood. It's not candy-coated. It's raw and dark and painful.

Writing this book required a fearlessness and willingness to expose myself to vulnerability by sharing the deepest stories of my life. I hope others may find some measure of comfort and hope in what I have shared here. Life is unpredictable. It's joyous and beautiful and terrifying. But each of us has one, and I believe it is meant to be lived in the sunshine where we can feel the warmth of God's love. Refuse to live in the shadowy places created by fear. Breathe deeply. Close your eyes and step out into the sun.

I have battled anxiety since I was a small child, and I have learned over time that when it is left unchecked, it begins to steal your joy and your freedom. It is easy to become a hostage to the relentless swarms of negative emotion and fear-based thoughts that invade your mind and body. The only way to preserve your freedom from this disorder is to refuse to stop moving forward. As an adult, I still struggle with anxiety, panic, and other symptoms of PTSD, but even as hard as it is some days, I know that it is worth the fight to keep my freedom and to experience joy in every way possible.

I have come to trust God to lead me through those dark places knowing that the sun is just at the edge of every shadowed moment. I have learned to be open about my struggle with PTSD and anxiety, and to stand up to those who might judge me by refusing to hide my truth. There is power in honest revelation, and there is peace in knowing that God created me flaws and all from the deepest places of love that are found within him.