How to Deal with Worrisome Times?

We are living in difficult times with the doom and gloom of mainstream media as well as social media. One needs to protect themselves, to protect their sanity to keep their head above the water.

Since more than 2 years now, we have lived through trying times and it seems like when one challenge is getting to an end, a new one is taking over, as scary as that one, if not more. When people were starting to see a glimmer of hope thanks to the covid vaccine, the war between Russia and Ukraine has brought other kind of issues such as oil shortage, inflation, fear of recession, to name a few, bringing back to people’s front-mind worry, fear and uncertainty toward the future. These issues get magnified by the media, creating a kind of fearmongering that  makes the future looking bleak.

In his book, “Stop worrying and Start Living”, Dale Carnegie recommends to “Put a ‘stop-loss’ order on your worries. Decide just how much anxiety a thing may be worth- and refuse to give it anymore.” – Dale Carnegie.

I like this philosophy of life: “put a stop-loss order on your worries”.  Some would say that it’s easy said than done. But let be real here, there are a lot of triggers for worry and if we don’t take a step back to examine the circumstances, we’re going to lose our most important asset, that is our health. In fact, Medical professionals think that constant worrying with negative thinking can take a great deal of toll on one’s whole wellbeing, i.e., emotional, spiritual, and physical health (e.g., feeling of helplessness, emptiness, insomnia, headaches, stomach issues, muscle aching, breathing problems…). Besides, people tend to not appreciate the company of someone in this state, then leading to loneliness, and again to worry, fear… creating a negative vicious circle..

By taking a step back, one will be able to see the situation rationally, to make a distinctive difference between worries they can control and worries beyond their control.

When things are under our control, we can take action to make things better, thus reducing the worry. As for the things beyond our control such as gas price, inflation, the war in Ukraine, or any other issues out of touch, it is important to challenge these thoughts. For instance, is there a more positive way one can look at the situation? Worrying about a situation makes us forget the many blessings we have in our life. Be open-minded to count those blessings, instead of leaning on negative and worrisome thoughts. Ask yourself, is it possible to accept things you cannot change? Is it possible to find peace in the eye of the storm? The storm always passes, the same way the dark night is always followed by a brighter day. How do you feel knowing that?
If you were to advice a friend in the same situation, what would you tell them to reassure them that in the end things will work out fine?

Worrying is becoming part of our culture, probably because worry attracts fear, anxiety and when people are fearful, they don’t have a rational thinking and therefore become prey to fearmongers who might have other agenda for their prey. It is crucial to protect ourselves by not buying into everything we hear or see on mainstream media/social media, without double-checking the authenticity, rare commodity these days. Jim Rohn rightly put it this way “Stand guard at the door of your mind”. If we don’t deliberately choose what enters our mind, what to focus on, we will end up losing control over our life. That’s how we end up giving in to fear, anxiety, worry and alike. Napoleon Hill says that “When you close the door of your mind to negative thoughts, the door of opportunity opens to you.”

If you need help to take control over your life and not live in worry, fear and anxiety contact us, I will help you put a ‘stop-loss’ order on your worries.

Our experience and expertise will serve you and help you to have a more flourishing life. Worry, loneliness, self-doubt, and fears should not have a chapter in our life. God has created you in His very image and likeness…. we will help you to tap into your inner Greatness!