How to Cope with Worry

We all worry about life from time to time; it’s natural and probably necessary. But sometimes an ordinary amount of worry can get out of control and spiral into anxiety, eroding our enjoyment of life.

Here’s a tip I use when coaching to help clients control their worrying:

Coaching Exercise

Allow yourself to develop the worry. Take it to the extreme as in ‘What is the worst possible outcome?’ Simply articulating this can help enormously and if you can visualise yourself dealing with the worst case scenario it will help.

Then imagine what is the best possible outcome?

And finally, looking at all the evidence and information you have, what is the most realistic outcome?

How do you manage life’s wee worries? Do you have a favourite tip to share? I’d love to hear it!

Plan to Worry

Here’s a quick tip if you find yourself worrying too much about something.

Don’t try and ignore what’s worrying you but, if you can’t immediately do something about it, give yourself a worry time. Decide that at a certain time you will spend some time giving the worry your full attention.

Put it in your diary and then when one o’clock, or whatever time you choose comes, sit down and think about it for your allotted time.

You’ll come back to the issue refreshed and may even get a much better solution!

How do you cope with your worries?