“Do you remember the things you were worrying about a year ago? How did they work out? Didn't you waste a lot of fruitless energy on account of most of them? Didn't most of them turn out all right after all?” – Dale Carnegie
“What if we knew for certain that everything we're worried about today will work out fine? What if . . . we knew the future was going to be good, and we would have an abundance of resources and guidance to handle whatever comes our way? What if . . . we knew everything was okay, and we didn't have to worry about a thing? What would we do then? We'd be free to let go and enjoy life.” – Melodie Beattie
I love those two quotes. Worrying is a tough habit to break. I know whereof I speak. I come from a long line of worriers! When I began to trust my intuition for guidance, I found it difficult to differentiate between worry/fear and intuition. Worst still, the worry was blocking the messages that intuition was trying to send.
I’ve talked to people about how they handle bouts of overzealous worrying and heard some funny, but effective techniques. My client, Cliff has a worry box. He writes all of his anxieties on a piece of paper and sticks them in a box on his bookshelf. Once a year he pulls them all out and is delighted to discover that 99% of the things he’s written about never happened.
My friend, Erica, exaggerates her worries and enthralls me with hysterical worst-case scenarios. She finds that if she can laugh about her concerns, she can more easily let them go!
Kate has a huge “worry doll” in her office. If all else fails, she tells the doll it’s her turn to worry! It serves as a reminder that she can put her worries away for the time being.
What’s a creative way for you to handle your worries? I’d love to hear your techniques!
