Ways to cope with stress – don’t worry!
I thought worry was a natural part of life, it was in mine. However, lately I have been able to notice this pattern of faulty thinking, and in recognizing it I have been experiencing freedom from worry. And I am growing stronger because of it.
My reputation as a worrier precedes me. I have been known to worry about the most minute things. My making a mountain out of a molehill philosophy may have come from my mom who also is known as a worrier. I am not sure you can inherit these traits. Anyway, I am a chronic worrier and I am now learning that worry has never, ever done me any good.
First off, no amount of worrying, none, will make things any different. I been concerned about my kids staying safe going to and from school. So I did a bunch of training beforehand to be sure they knew the rules forward and backwards. Don’t talk to anyone you don’t know and never walk by yourself. I felt these were good safe rules.
But the bottom line is, as soon as they leave the house something could happen to them. They could get hit by a car. They could slip on ice and break their arm. They could get to the corner and take a right instead of a left. And I couldn’t do anything about it, and all my worrying wouldn’t change that at all!
So after 5 kids growing up and walking and walking and walking both to and from school and nothing happening, I think I am getting the picture. My worrying does not change the outcome. So this got me to thinking.
I tend to worry about things that never will happen anyway. So I am looking at things differently. Meaning I decide what are the odds that this could really happen and if it is high then I give it some credence and do still worry. Once when one of my boys had a chance to get an airplane ride for memorizing bible verses in Sunday school, I got to try this theory. The teacher of Sunday School was also the pilot and he knew how to fly that plane. Yes it was dangerous but I determined that the odds of crashing were very low, so I only worried a little bit. (I did mention that I am a recovering worrier, right?)
Lastly, worrying can actually bring on problems. I’ve been self-employed for over 20 years. When you’re self-employed, you know that every month can be an adventure, as far as income goes. There are no guarantees. Well, one of my biggest worries is money. It can be so bad that it can immobilize me – I can spend way to much time fretting about paying the bills, and organizing my Quickbooks, and not near enough time actually working to bring in money. The worrying can overwhelm me and bring about the problem that I’m worrying about. This isn’t good or necessary.
Instead of just stop worrying, I was able to come up with an answer to worrying about the income by having my less-worrying wife take over the bill paying. Now, she doesn’t sleep (no just kidding!), I can focus on making the money needed to stay afloat.
Try these 3 ways to not worry and enjoy freedom from worry like you have never known. Keep in my the Bible does say “Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.