by Dana Anderson |
Q: My life feels out of control. Everywhere I look there are piles—it feels like it anyway. I’m pulled in so many directions I’m surprised I get anything done. My husband is always shopping—it feels like we have so much stuff. I also worry a lot, about my kids mostly. They are in college yet I worry. I know I should talk to somebody, it just feels like one more thing. What should I do?
A: I think this is a stressful time for everyone. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been impacted by the state of the economy–and if you are one of the lucky, you are still plugged into the daily-hourly-by-the-minute barrage of headlines telling us how awful things are in Nevada, the country, and the world. One of the simplest interventions for anxiety is turning off the 24-hour news cycle. Unplug.
It sounds like you are also feeling overwhelmed. If you are not literally plugged in, meaning watching or reading the news, you can still be attuned to the energy around you and become anxious. For instance, at the beginning or end of the school year, even if you don’t have children, you can find yourself feeling frenzied. Breathe. It really helps. Breathe and look around you. Notice. In your house, if there is too much stuff start thinking about what you can part with.
Simplifying truly brings inner peace though it is not always easy to do. We can become overly attached to our things and assign them more importance than they deserve. After all, it is just stuff. I was tricked into learning this long after I had read all the books and knew it was true. We were moving and had to “declutter” our house. Wow, what a difference it made mentally. Of course, we couldn’t part with all of our framed photos and such but we did stay on the path of simplifying knowing that we felt better, mentally and physically.
Worrying is tough. To some degree we all worry, especially lately. But some worrying can keep you up at night until all hours. Then, not only are you anxious, but you are now sleep deprived which makes it worse. I believe real relief from these very uncomfortable feelings comes from the mind. Rewiring our thoughts. When you have those dreadful thoughts, “What is going to happen… is she alright… will there be enough…” replace that thought with one that generally asserts “It will all be okay.” Then get specific, “It will all be okay because…” And know that it will. There are hundreds, probably thousands, of books and practitioners to help guide you through this process. I invite you to embrace some of these ideas and see what happens, you may be surprised. Many blessings.
For more info, contact Dana Anderson MFT specializing in personal and spiritual growth counseling (775) 323-4242
