Fear not

How much of your time is spent in fear of what could happen? I have found a large portion of my patients experience fear or worry on a regular basis. When you spend time worrying, it activates your stress response system and thus the cascade of stress hormones. Stress hormone release is well known to be a major contributor to chronic disease such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes etc. So how do you eliminate worry? It's not easy, but it is simple. I teach my patients a couple of different techniques, based upon their unique position. I'll make a few generic recommendations here today.

First, I would advise you to ask yourself if you are worrying about something you have no control over. If this is the case, you are letting something consume your time and health without the possibility of changing the outcome. As with many things, recognition is the first step. If you find yourself consumed with things beyond your control, learn to recognize and then make a conscious decision to think about something else. A great step would be to choose to think about the things you do want, rather than the things you do not. How much better would your time be spent focusing on the things you really want in your life?

Next I would recommend focusing on the present. I refer to this as present time consciousness. Dwelling on the past usually involves some form of regret or guilt which does not serve us well in the present. Worrying about the future is just as detrimental. Ask yourself what problem you are faced with at this exact moment. If there is a problem to be dealt with at this moment, then certainly solve it. If there is no current problem, there is no need to try to solve a potential problem or a problem in the past; both are non-existent in the present time. This brings me to my last point, which is to say that your mind is a powerful tool, use it as such. Just like any other tool. If you have no current need for it, do not employ it. When your mind is busy working on a non-existent problem, it creates more stress for you as well as impairs your ability to deal real problems you currently have. You may be asking yourself, "but what about preparing for the future?" There is absolutely nothing wrong with preparing for the future, however, preparing and planning are miles away from worrying about the future. Have confidence in yourself that you will be able to handle the problems life throws at you.