Worrying can reduce your quality of life. When you are worried about something, it can be hard to do or even think about anything else. While it is easy enough for someone to simply tell you to stop worrying, it is hard to do. The best way to address your worries is to try to put them in perspective, to take action if you can, and to accept the situation if it is out of your hands.
Consider the Consequences
First, you should try to be realistic about what is worrying you and what the consequences will be. In some cases, once you take a closer look at the situation, you may find that you are disproportionately imagining how it will affect you. For example, maybe you are concerned about an upcoming test. However, when you think about it carefully, you’ll realize that even if you don’t do well on it, you can still pass the class. Of course, you would prefer to ace the test, but in putting it in perspective, you can stop a train of thought that goes something like this: “If I fail the class, I’ll fail the course, and then I’ll have to drop out of college, and I’ll never get the job I want!” Another way to look at this is to take the long view. In a year, is the thing you are worried about something that will even affect you?
Consider Your Actions
Another way to stop worrying is to face the problem head-on and try to solve it. Sometimes, the worst part of a problem is your fear of it. Perhaps, like a lot of people, you are worried about your student loans and the interest that you are paying on them. Maybe this is so upsetting to you that you just try to make the payment without thinking about it, but you can’t get rid of the nagging fear that you will have this debt for a long time. Have you considered refinancing your loans? Refinancing with a lower interest rate means big savings, and you may be surprised at how much better you feel when you have tackled this problem. It doesn’t take long to check with some online lenders and find out what options are available to you.
Consider Acceptance
One of the biggest challenges you may face if you are a worrier is accepting that sometimes there is nothing you can do to improve a situation. For example, perhaps you have a coworker or a neighbor who dislikes you no matter how pleasant you are to them. This is an uncomfortable situation, but you cannot force another person to change their feelings about you. As long as this person simply dislikes you and is not doing anything to actively sabotage you, there is not a lot you can do besides behave professionally with the coworker or civilly with the neighbor when you have to interact. You can make a pact with yourself to just accept that this is something that is out of your control and remind yourself of that pact every time you feel your thoughts start to stray toward the path of worry again.
