Like so many of us, I spent the majority of my life trying to maintain a sense of control over everything around me: my family, my career, and my social world. For the most part it worked! I kept busy managing my adorable family, lively social life, and fulfilling career as a professor at Texas Christian University.

Then I faced a series of challenges that turned my world upside down. One of my children received a special needs diagnosis, my performance reviews fell, and I found out that I had cancer. I was devastated, and in that devastation, I came to realize I could not control my life circumstances. I could only control how I faced them.

The need to control is rooted in anxiety. I realized anxiety was my biggest personal challenge, and it was robbing me of peace and joy in my daily life. I set out to understand this problem by turning my research focus from 19th-century literature (my academic specialization) to empathy and mindfulness. Then I created courses on these subjects to share what I was learning with students who were also experiencing increasing levels of anxiety due to the challenges related to coming of age during a pandemic. Through this work, I found the means to help manage my anxiety, better connect with my students, and create stronger and more communicative relationships with my loved ones.