Do you frequently catch yourself deep in thought and worrying about life’s challenges? If so, you need to make some changes! Anxiety sometimes gets the best of us leaving our mind’s to ruminate on the past and stress about the future, but what is most important in life is the now, the present moment. With our minds on another timezone, we are unable to enjoy what is right in front of us nor are we able to be productive and do things properly. Anxiety affects almost everything we do and almost everyone around us. And that is why you need to do something about it – to maintain your career, relationships, and well being.
There’s a really simple method that is proven to work through a study conducted at Penn State University in America. Rather than allowing your mind to worry all day, schedule a time to worry for 30 minutes. It sounds silly, but this study found that individuals who scheduled time to worry experienced a significant decrease in anxiety and even slept better.
You might be wondering how on earth this is going to work, but think about all of those worry free minutes you can now use to focus on something else like your hobby. Allowing yourself to only worry for 30 minutes per day opens up your day to pleasure, positivity, and presence. It may even help you problem solve!
Ready to give it a try? Here are some steps to help you get started…
- Choose a 30 minute period to worry and add it in your calendar. It’s best to keep a consistent time and location to help you remember and make it a routine. Try not to schedule your time too close to bedtime as it can make falling asleep difficult.
- If you catch yourself worrying outside of ‘worry time’ – come back to the present and jot down any thoughts that popped in your head so you can revisit them later.
- Set your timer when ‘worry time’ begins. No need to worry a minute more than necessary!
- During worry time, you can sit with your thoughts or write them down – whatever works for you.
- Keep practicing each day and it will get easier and easier.
You may not see an improvement straight away, but give it time. We hope this method works for you. Worry less, smile more!