There is one person in Lina Bailey’s life whom she can always turn to for advice; whether it’s about friends or everyday situations, Bailey’s grandma is there to support her.

Bailey turned to her grandma in a moment of stress and was given the best piece of advice she has ever received.

“It was when I was having a fight with one of my friends,” Bailey said. “I was pretty upset about it and I just kept thinking about it and stressing about it a lot. [My grandma] told me that I couldn’t control that I was being stressed out, but I could control what I do and how I channel my energy.”

This advice allowed her to consider channeling her energy into other outlets: dancing and playing the violin. These coping strategies have helped in recent situations when she is stressed and anxious, and even improved her dancing.

Bailey has been close with her grandma ever since she was young. They live an hour from each other and Bailey visits her grandma about twice a week. Bailey found it difficult not to be able to spend time with her grandma during quarantine, but they often talked on the phone.

“It feels really good to have someone I can trust because I don’t have a ton of people whom I completely trust,” Bailey said. “I completely trust my grandma.”

Their relationship has grown as Bailey has gotten older; she finds herself having more mature and meaningful conversations with her grandma.

Bailey has become a less anxious person by taking the advice from her grandma; she has learned to not focus on little things. Having someone to confide in has helped Bailey become more self-dependent. She applies the advice she got when she was younger into her daily life now. But, the first few times Bailey was given advice, she wasn’t as accepting.

“I might have tried to push it away more,” Bailey said. “[As I’ve gotten older], I’ve realized that [my grandma] is wiser than me, so I should try and apply it into my life.”
Another person that Bailey can confide in is her mom. There aren’t a ton of people in Bailey’s life whom she can completely trust, but prioritizing her family has given her strong connections with them — something she values a lot.

“I feel like I’m a lot like my grandma and my mom,” Bailey said. “They can understand when I’m going through something because they might have responded the same way too when they were my age.”

When problems arise, in the past, Bailey initially tried to solve them herself. But having a trusted loved one to fall back on for some advice has shaped her into the person she is today.