Having anxiety and agoraphobia holds you back. But there are positives to be found…

If I hadn't experienced anxiety and agoraphobia and the therapy that resulted from them, I wouldn't now understand human complexities as I do, writes Charlotte Levin

I sometimes wonder about my parallel life: the one in which I attended drama school, became a respected actor, travelled the world and ended up marrying Louis Theroux after meeting him at an awards ceremony. The life in which I didn't develop anxiety and agoraphobia.

In 1995, aged 23, after years of auditions, my application had been accepted for the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. My desire to act since the age of eight was firmly cemented and my dreams were coming to fruition. I was living in London so I'd arranged some viewings of potential digs. My boyfriend and I decided to make a trip of it and planned an extended scenic route - a concept now incomprehensible. But by the time we left, I was getting nervous.