Nothing in the affairs of men is worthy of great anxiety . PlatoAnxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength . Charles Spurgeon
Excessive worry or Generalized Anxiety refers to when you are excessively anxious about multiple events or activities such as your future, family and work. The worry is perceived as being uncontrollable whilst causing Individuals to be restless, easily fatigued, experiencing poor concentration, irritability, muscle tension or sleep difficulties.
Excessive worry can be fuelled by an intolerance of uncertainty, perfectionism, positive beliefs about worry and a negative problem orientation. Below I have outlined some strategies that will assist you in overcoming your worries:
1.Tolerate uncertainty by disengaging with reassurance seeking, procrastination, rechecking your actions, seeking a lot of information before making decisions and refusing to delegate tasks. These coping strategies will exacerbate your anxiety in the long term as they avert you from discovering that you can cope with uncertainty and that your anxiety will subside with time .
2. Let go of your worries by noticing and acknowledging them, remaining present and non- judgemental when overthinking rather than allowing your mind to take you on a destructive hypothetical journey. Accept your worries and experience the emotions, sensations, thoughts and images associated with these.
3. Problem solving is an alternative to worry as it allows you to face your anxiety and take much needed action. I would suggest identifying opportunities and threats within your worries which his effective in reducing the negative problem orientation. The identification of your precise problem followed by the goal, generation of potential solutions for your precise worries alongside identifying strengths and drawbacks of each solutions. Finally select which solution or combination of solutions is most likely to resolve the problem followed by implementation .
4. Controlled worry periods allow you to test the belief that worry is uncontrollable. identify worrisome thoughts and establish a 30 minute worry period to take place at the same location daily. Postpone your worry and attend to the present moment until your worry period is due during which you can worry and problem solve.
5. Identify and question beliefs about the usefulness of worry such as worry helps with problem solving, protects you from experiencing negative emotions and motivates you whilst aiding decision making
Martina Witter
Accredited Cognitive Behaviour Therapist