Time Block Your Worries

“Training your mind to be in the present moment is the number one key to making healthier choices.“You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” - Jon Kabat-Zinn

Time Block Your Worries

Here’s what to do when you find yourself overwhelmed and worried about all the things that might go wrong, and all the things that already have.

God knows we were given a million reasons to worry in the last few years alone, and even if you’re usually the optimistic one, I bet you it was hard to not worry…

But chronic worrying is not helpful… and actually, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine it can weaken your digestion.

So here’s what to do:  Give yourself time to think about what’s troubling you and explore your fears… Take time to plan for what you’ll do if things don’t work out and make a plan B. And C.

Then, give yourself time for something else. Like play or work. Or even clean. Just do something else, and when you find yourself thinking about what’s troubling you again, simply tell yourself that you will think about it later. You’re not ignoring your thoughts, you’re creating a border around them so they don’t leak into everything else in your life and suck all the fun out of it.

Literally, time block your worries, just like you would time block other activities, and give yourself a chance to process what’s really triggering you so it can flow through you, rather than get you stuck in the repetitiveness of it.

About 6 months after moving to New Zealand we experienced a major weather event. A huge storm and bucket loads of rain created so much damage to our rural road system and many private properties.

We got very lucky because of where our house is located, but the night before we woke up to all the damage, I had decided to take our little one to see the doctor in the morning, because I was worried she might have a lung infection….

It’s been a whole week with all three munchkins feeling under the weather (and thus no sleep for me…) and the little one was coughing really bad.

The night before we woke up to heavy rain and a river flowing down our driveway, her cough seemed to be getting worse, and I began to worry… Lying with her in my bed all night, listening to her moan and groan, I’ve decided to take her to the doctor in the morning (which is very rare for me). But in the morning, our road was completely blocked by a massive slip and huge trees that were literally standing on top as if there was never a no road there.

There was a lot to worry about…

How am I going to take my baby to the doctor? What if we can’t take her?? What if she gets worse???

I don’t like worrying. It makes me feel anxious and powerless.

So we called for some advice and agreed to keep monitoring her symptoms. We also made plans for a case of an emergency and realized we can call the helicopter ambulance…

Ok, good. Now we had a plan. We know what symptoms to keep an eye for and we know what to do if needed.

Now what?

Now, Ben had to go out and put his spade to good use in the pouring rain, clearing drains and building dams, while I stayed inside with the snotty kids. There was no time to worry. I decided to let it go for 1 hour and then reassess. That hour gave me a chance to gather my energy, have a bite to eat, and drink all the coffee (told you, it’s been a whole WEEK of not sleeping for this mumma). And you know what? That was the day that the little one started getting better!  When Ben came back from his spading mission, he updated me again on the bad state of the roads and we learned from our local community the huge extent of what happened (aka back into worrying).

So I came up with this brilliant plan: Worry when I worry – and then don’t.

When I’m reading the news, I can consider all the emergency prep we need to do and all the plans we have to put into action – and then, when there’s no action to take at that moment in time, it’s time to let go. I can go play with my kids, dance to some music, and when a worrisome thought creeps into my head – I can tell it to come back later when it’s worry time. I told myself: “I hear you, I’m not gonna ignore you. I’ll consider you later when I’m doing my worrying”.

Worrying is useful because it helps us to plan for the ‘what if’s’. I find it very reassuring to have a plan and know what to do ‘in case of’. It makes me feel safe and it allows me to relax into the here and now, which is pretty good.

The problem is over-worrying… when the same thoughts come back in a loop over and over and over again. It’s exhausting. It sucks away all your energy, leaving you feeling drained. I don’t want to feel like that, do you? So I time block my worries. I give myself time to work it through in my head, so that I don’t need to keep doing it, and I can go back to focusing on what IS working. When I do that, I can be more present with my kids, I can nourish myself with gratitude and positive thinking, and overall spend very minimal time in the worry club.

You gonna try it?

(First published by yogahealthcoaching.com)