The other day I was out walking on a beautiful, bright sunny spring morning. Or rather, my body was walking, but my mind was elsewhere. Has that ever happened to you? I was ruminating over what was, in retrospect, a relatively small decision. Thankfully, I noticed the activity of my mind, and how it was making me feel in my body: smaller, contracted and tense. It dawned on me how small this thought actually was, a tiny electrical impulse in my brain that was consuming my experience far more than it should. Compared to what was around me, it was miniscule.
This is not unusual. We live our lives consumed by the mind and it’s judgements, conclusions, assumptions and fears. It’s like a veil which we peek through to reality once in a while. We see the world not as it is, but how WE are.
I asked myself: “Why not make this less important?”.
Worry and anxiety will make thoughts very, very important. Sometimes we do have important decisions, but most of the time we spend draining our energy and time with useless worrying. The actual time it takes to make that decision, do the dreaded task, or have the difficult conversation or send the email is very small. My wish for you is that you can free up your energy spent on anxious thoughts and get to the real task of living your life.
It worked. Overthinking is the main cause of anxiety. Stop it in it’s tracks.
What thoughts cause you to worry? Make them less important. Know that if you do, another thought will probably rise, make that less important too. See it shrinking away so your life, the present moment, can come into full focus.
Anxiety makes things important to keep you safe. Our brains are not wired to be happy, they are wired to keep you safe. But the catch is, you are safe. If you weren’t, anxiety turns to fear and you would not be reading this blog. You would be busy running away or fighting the oncoming threat, or worse.
Breathe. Notice your worrying thoughts, and stop overthinking. Make them less important and put the bigger, more important jobs of loving, playing, doing your life, and having fun on your plate. I think this is what is meant by living from your heart, not your head :))
Ask yourself: what am I making important, and is this a priority? Now stop overthinking it.
If you are overthinking the upcoming workshop, dive in now. See the info below. Only 2 spots left. I assure you, your life is worth it.
Wishing you a present, fun and playful day,
Madeleine
2 thoughts on “The biggest cause of anxiety”
Good thoughts as usual, Madeleine. Especially for those of us who overthink things. I’m doing much less of that since attending your Mindfullness classes, which is a blessing.
Kay, Yes, our minds are so good at thinking, but not so good at stopping!