If you are feeling low and can’t bring yourself to go anywhere, pick up the phone and call a good friend. It will help make you feel better about life and yourself.

Hearing the voice of someone you care about, spending a few minutes getting involved in his or her world, can give you a new outlook on life. Making this positive emotional connection might be just what you need to get moving again.

Friendship is highly underrated. It can make the difference between a life of joy and one of depression. For someone who is dealing with acute anxiety, however, making friends can seem next to impossible because the fear that comes with anxiety can cripple you and make you incapable of reaching out to someone else.

To get past this, there are a few things you can do.

Reliability is the cornerstone of a good friendship. Knowing that you can call and count on someone to be there for you, who has your back, is empowering and a great comfort. If there is no one in your life like that at the moment, think back to who supported you in the past. What happened to that person or those people? Maybe it’s time to rekindle those relationships, and you can do it from the privacy of your own home by simply sending an email or a text. It doesn’t have to be long or dramatic — just a quick hello to begin the reconnection process.

If you want to have a friend, learn to be a friend. Giving what you want to get is the best way to show someone how good a friend you can be. People usually like us because we like them, so let another person know that you’d like to be friends. Most people don’t discuss their friendships unless something has gone wrong, but by establishing that you are friends, you will let the positive emotions sink in.

Having a friend who won’t judge you can make your life better. Feeling judged can be painful. You need to take the risk of trusting another person and opening up. Letting out your feelings to a trusted ally is good therapy as well.

Deep discussions are a true treasure of friendship. You will feel stronger in just knowing that someone really understands you. Sharing with a friend validates our feelings and our sense of self. When you’ve received confirmation that what you are dealing with is real and that your emotions are appropriate to what’s happening, you will feel better about yourself.

Happiness can come from knowing you have good people in your life. If you don’t have a family of your own, having friends be your family is a true privilege. This might feel scary, but it is the truth. Now all you need to do is pick up the phone or send a note to someone you can trust. Your friendships will grow naturally, and your life will be lifted by it.