These tips on how to stop worrying come from experience. I've always been a bit of a worrier. Thankfully, I have learned some techniques that help me and others that have used them. Here are the best of them. Make A Decision A sure way to stop worrying too much about an unresolved issue is to make a decision. Even bad decisions may often be better than doing nothing. You may immediately resolve the stress when you finally decide to quit that job, buy that house, or make that phone call. Nothing can crowd and cloud your mind with worry quite so much as decisions waiting to be made. Just make them, and if they prove to be bad decisions, just make new ones. Take Action Action towards a goal tends to diminish worry. Doing nothing but thinking too much about a goal, especially if you dwell on the hurdles, will cause you worry and stress. Certainly you should plan well, but when planning drifts towards worrying, start doing something positive. Confront Problems Want to know how to stop worrying when there are real problems? Confront them head-on. When I had to sue someone over a business matter, I was worrying about it for weeks. I finally just filed the papers, got on the phone, and came to an agreement. My stress was gone. In fact, my worrying dissipated as soon as started acting, BEFORE the resolution. Even if you tend to dwell on past losses, you can probably see that there is more mental pain in thinking about a possible loss than in the loss itself. Suppose you lost a thousand dollars in the stock market a while back. Today, you would probably suffer less from that than you would from wondering if you'll make it on time to a concert you paid $30 for. It isn't the problems themselves, but the anticipation of problems that causes the most worry. Deal with them head on as soon as is possible, and resolve them to the extent possible. Mental Categories When there are too many things going on in my head, I put them on lists and feel better. Maybe you've had similar experiences. If you're thinking too much about something, and you stop to schedule a time to work on it, it is easier to let go of it for now. Write down that phone call you have to make on tomorrow's list, and you'll feel less worried now. You're creating "mental categories." Just telling yourself, "There is nothing I can do about this until Monday," can put a worry into a category of "nothing to worry about now." How To Stop Worrying By Meditating Meditating can be a great way to relax and to stop worrying. What if you don't want to take the time for more involved meditative practices? Try this: just close your eyes, let the tension out of your body and take several deep breaths through your nose. There are also brain wave entrainment CDs that will do all the work for you. Pop on the headphones and they'll relax you by slowing your brain waves. Whichever techniques you use to stop your worries, make them into habits. Nothing works if you forget to use it. In fact, until they become automatic, you might want to carry a list of your favorite tips on how to stop worrying. |
