3 Days to Break Free From WorrySýnishorn

COVID-19 is a new disease, but worry is an old one—a disease of the imagination. It’s a virus that slowly and subtly takes over and dominates your life. When this happens, your ability to live life the way you want is diminished. You may wonder if there are ways to change your pattern of worry and anxiety. The answer is yes. 

First, take control of your thought life by reading as much as you can. Two helpful resources are Overcoming Fear and Worry, by Norman Wright and Freeing Yourself from Anxiety, by Tamar E. Chansky, Ph.D. Then take a worry vacation by setting time aside each day to do things that you would do if you weren’t worried or feeling anxious. To keep out worry, put a Do Not Enter sign on a door in your home to remind you to keep the worry out!

Try these other tips for overcoming worry:

Don’t let your feelings rule.

Emotions arrive first and call the shots, which creates a reaction before you know why. When you begin to worry, take a deep breath and let your rational side kick in. Tell yourself, “the way I feel now is not how I’ll feel later.”

Take a deep breath.

When we’re anxious we tend to take short rapid breaths causing our body to react negatively. To counter this reaction, focus on slowing and calming your breathing. Inhale deeply through your nose and count to three before exhaling through your mouth blowing the air out slowly. Repeat this several times until you feel your breathing pattern return to normal.

Set a time to worry.

If you find yourself worrying for the better part of the day, schedule a time to worry. The rest of the day, do not let the thoughts settle.

Put your worries in a box.

Select a container and write “Worry Container” on the side. Whenever you begin to worry, take a piece of paper, write it out in detail, open the lid, put it inside, and close the lid. When you dwell on the same worry, remind yourself that you’re not going to forget it because it’s in the container. 

Tell yourself to stop.

Take a blank index card and on one side write the word STOP in large, bold letters. On the other side write the complete text of Philippians 4:6-9. Keep the card with you at all times. Whenever you’re alone and begin to worry, take the card out, hold the “stop” side in front of you, and say aloud “Stop!” Then turn the card over and read the Scripture passage aloud twice with emphasis.