Throughout my time enjoying Last Fantasy XIV, I’ve overcome lots of anxiousness. Not simply within the sport but in addition outdoors of it, and sure issues that I’ve skilled inside Eorzea have transferred into actual life. 

In fact,, the story and characters stick with me; their phrases echo round my thoughts throughout instances once I’m struggling. However issues that I’ve managed to realize throughout my sport time have given me pause for thought in the actual world as nicely. If I can overcome issues that terrify me and push me in Eorzea, absolutely I can push myself in actual life. 

I’ve already talked about my expertise overcoming tank anxiousness in FFXIV earlier than occurring to be a Darkish Knight essential. That have, in a wierd method, taught me about taking life by the horns and doing issues that push your boundaries. Therapeutic, however, is one thing that I as soon as discovered really terrifying and had zero confidence doing. 

Besides now, all of my healer jobs are sitting at stage 90, and I’m truly excited to extend all of them to stage 100 when Dawntrail drops on the finish of June. I’m very happy to leap into any content material as a healer, although I’d fumble my buttons to begin with if it’s been some time. Getting thus far, although, was not simple. 

I truly began enjoying Last Fantasy XIV as a healer. A Conjurer, to be exact. The difficulty was, I had by no means performed an MMO earlier than and I had no concept that enjoying that job would place me in a celebration because the healer for everybody else concerned. The inexperienced icon didn’t give me any clues, both. Like I stated, I had no thought what I used to be doing. I didn’t even take the trace once I began to realize therapeutic spells, merely pondering, “nicely, that may are available in helpful someday,” whereas going about my day utilizing Stone and Aero to take down foes I encountered, like an fool. 

It wasn’t till I queued, alone, for Sashtasha that I found the load that I’d taken upon myself by selecting the Conjurer class. I didn’t know I used to be imagined to be therapeutic, I didn’t know that was my function, nevertheless it rapidly dawned on me when the celebration died and everybody blamed me. I’m not ashamed to confess that I dropped the dungeon and all however ran to the primary city-state on the teleport record to select up a brand new class, which ended up being Rogue. 

And so it went on, I leveled Rogue and all of my different DPS lessons, together with ones which unlock later like Samurai and Dancer. My Conjurer remained at round stage 19 for over a yr, untouched and feared. Then, and should you’ve learn my tank anxiousness article, you’ll know what’s coming: my FC on the time acquired concerned and pushed me to select up Conjurer once more. Fortunately, this was earlier than the tanking expertise, and so they have been a lot gentler with me than they went on to be with the entire Paglth’an debacle. 

It began with FATEs, one thing that I might do with out worrying an excessive amount of about these round me. We ran up and down Western La Noscea, taking up each FATE we encountered, which not solely gave me expertise but in addition ranges and new spells to go along with them. I very slowly began to really heal the folks round me, although studying the right way to juggle DPS and therapeutic was positively a studying curve. Fairly quickly, I used to be stage 30 and in a position to go and decide up my Job Stone, turning myself right into a White Mage. 

By this level, the notion of therapeutic wasn’t horrifically scary to me anymore, although I used to be removed from good at it. However I nonetheless prevented it as a lot as I might. Ultimately, I left that FC for one purpose or one other and set out alone for a very long time, not therapeutic but in addition not scared of it, till I noticed somebody with a particular weapon which I completely fell in love with — Canopus Lux. 

This weapon is gorgeous; there’s no denying that. Just like the Amaro mount, which finally drove me to tanking, this weapon was the driving pressure behind my lastly overcoming the barrier that was retaining me from therapeutic—my very own insecurity. 

And I did. I swallowed my pleasure, I picked up Astrologian, and I apologized to everybody I ended up with in a dungeon, telling them that they might seemingly die and so they have been welcome to kick me in the event that they needed to. I wasn’t griefing, I used to be simply horrible at therapeutic. These first dungeons have been onerous, however I by no means acquired kicked. Like with my tanking journey, most individuals have been very understanding, and a few even gave extremely useful recommendation. Slowly, I gained confidence, but in addition talent. 

Ultimately, I began to crave the push that therapeutic gave me. I’m not saying that I take pleasure in having folks’s lives in my palms, however I take pleasure in having the ability to preserve folks alive and prolonging the battle lengthy sufficient to win. It’s a thrill, and I’ve since discovered that, like tanking, the completely different therapeutic Jobs aren’t all that dissimilar to one another. In fact, every has its personal nuances, however they comply with the identical sample – if persons are dying, you heal. If persons are good, you do DPS. 

With all that stated, I’m by no means going to be a very good healer. I do know what I’m doing, and I can preserve folks alive whereas performing some injury, however I nonetheless get confused between inexperienced and pink playing cards whereas enjoying Astrologian (I’m not trying ahead to having to relearn the Job after its Dawntrail overhaul), I nonetheless unintentionally spam Treatment typically when enjoying White Mage and I’ll admit that I fall into the entice of over-reliance on Holy. 

Sage is my strongest healer, and if I’ve to heal, it’s the Job I’ll all the time select. In the event you requested me to play Astrologian or White Mage proper now, I’d need to ask for 10 minutes with a coaching dummy to determine what I used to be doing, and should you needed me to play Scholar, I’d be clueless as a result of I’ve all the time leveled it by means of Summoner. Like I stated, I’m not a superb ‘all-around’ healer, however if you would like a Sage, I can do this for you. 

I additionally launched my fiancé to Sage, which is now his essential Job alongside my Darkish Knight. He, too, was frightened of therapeutic, however due to my very own expertise overcoming that concern, I might assist him overcome it, too. I’ve helped others beside him, as nicely, due to my Mentor standing. Speaking of which, I used to be enjoying as a healer once I lastly gained sufficient Commendations to select up the crown, which makes the function fairly particular to me. 

Now, how has all this helped me in the actual world? Effectively, I’ve discovered that whereas new issues may be scary at first, there’s lots of enjoyment that may be gained by means of studying the right way to do one thing. Gaining the arrogance to try to in the end do fairly nicely at one thing that completely terrified me in FFXIV confirmed me that studying one thing new doesn’t need to be one thing that I concern. I don’t must shrink back from one thing simply because I don’t absolutely perceive it. Determining the right way to do one thing isn’t simply rewarding, however the expertise of studying itself might be enjoyable. 

Whereas my therapeutic expertise in FFXIV hasn’t brought about me to exit and prepare to be a health care provider in actual life, it has given me a brand new perspective. I finished shying away from bettering myself and took on coaching programs and new alternatives, together with writing, which beforehand scared me to demise. 

Worry is pure, nevertheless it doesn’t need to outline your actions, and also you shouldn’t let it. What was it that Eleanor Roosevelt stated? “Do one factor on daily basis that scares you”. Your consolation zone could also be cozy, however going past it’s what helps us to develop.