Monday, June 15, 2009

Killing Worry


Worry is something everyone has been guilty of from time to time. Worry for the most part is a complete waste of time and energy. The only value of worry is in finding that something is out of alignment and needs to be fixed.

We've all heard the warning of how detrimental stress can be to our health. I believe a lot of people consider stress or worry to be something out of their control. I do think that some people are more susceptible to stress and worry but with some easy steps that worry can be lessened or eliminated.

Recognizing Worry

One of the biggest issues is recognizing when worry is present. People by nature go into auto-pilot and small incremental thoughts, actions and changes happen without us noticing. Ever drive to work or home and think, "wow, I'm here already, how did I get here"? Same thing happens with worry or stress, all of sudden you just don't feel very good or something is bothering you and you don't understand how you got yourself in this predicament.

Sometimes it's just really difficult to notice that stress has crept into your life. I struggle with this a lot. I'm thinking a habit needs to be forged where we examine our stress levels from time to time. I'm currently struggling with examining this myself. (Anyone have any ideas, please leave in comments.) I've tried setting reminders on my calendars, but if they occur too many times I get conditioned to them or ignore them.

Worry! What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!

Well that may not be entirely true, like I said above it can be good for recognizing that something is out of alignment and needs fixed. Once you recognize what the root problem is work on fixing it. Now stop worrying because worry is an absolute waste of time, fixes nothing and can even hamper your life, health and relationships.

Stress Tactics

  1. Exam your stress, define the root issue(s)
  2. Develop a plan of attack to fix the root issue(s)
  3. Work on root issue(s) all at once or little at a time
  4. Rinse and repeat
Before mastering these tactics the stress can sometimes seem overwhelming here are some tips to get you through.

  • Look at the big picture, ask yourself will this matter to anyone in a year, 2, 5, 100 years?
  • Still looking at the big picture, what's the worst possible outcome, defining the worst possible outcome is an easy way to see that it's really not all the bad. The unknown is much worse than the known.
  • Keep busy! Many times when stressed I'd rather just give up and be lazy or withdrawal. I know several people that don't have a lot of things to do and they're the most stressed out people I know. A problem is only a problem when you think about it, if you really commit yourself to be busy the problem is non-existent.
  • Consider past worries and issues you've had in life. How did they turn out? I'm assuming you made it through. Remember the phrase "this too shall pass".