I want you to do something for me. Don't worry, it won't take long and I swear that it won't be hard.

All I need you to do is feel a simple emotion. Fear.

I need you to think of something that genuinely upsets you, something you'd encounter in your day to day life that sends that little message of 'something is wrong here' to your brain without you actually thinking about it.

Once you have, I need you to grip that feeling and keep it in the fore-front of your mind. Concentrate on that fear, that worry.

It is uncomfortable, isn't it? If you've stuck with it, the longer you do it the worse the feeling becomes, right?

Well, imagine having that feeling looming over you 24/7. You don't get any breaks, that fear is there to stay. It doesn't want to go anywhere.
Imagine that feeling getting worse, that constant stress reaching a point where it is just about unbearable.

That's what so many people all over the world have to deal with. What I have to deal with.

It is like balancing on a tight-rope made of string.
You fear falling off, but you fear staying on because you know that sting won't be able to sustain your weight forever. All you have to do is get to the other side and it's all over. There won't be any more fear or worry or stress. You'd be safe.

Sometimes you are simply standing there, trying to decide if moving would be worth the risk of falling.
Sometimes you're inching along, keeping balance as best you can.

Sometimes... You feel yourself slip and the string SNAP.
You are powerless in that moment. You can not stop your descent. You have no one to reach out to. You are alone and you are falling.

All you know is what seems like a simple blink later, you're back on that string once again. Wobbling in place.

What I'm trying to get across here is, if you see someone's string fraying, don't wait until it snaps.

Be the one to reach out from the platform on the other end, giving encouragement and offering a hand out to help them manage to cross that distance.
Be the hand that grips theirs' when they slip.
Be the one who will pluck them up and put them back on that damned string, so they can reach the safety of the platform. The safety you offer them.

And, if you are one of those unintentional performers... I want you to know that no matter what, keep your eyes on that platform and take the hands offered to you.
You deserve to have a break from the stress of performing.