I find myself worrying about things that either haven't even happened yet or that I literally have no control over. Makes no sense but I do it anyway. But what if a couple of signs from the universe could change my perspective? I wonder what more I could focus on...
Why worry? Let’s be honest…it only produces worry lines.
It’s been rough the last couple months with all the uncertainty of Covid-19. From checking in on friends and family, worrying about my own family getting sick, myself getting sick and what that would mean for my family, what the economy is going to end up looking like, which political party is pushing further propaganda, if there will be a vaccine, wondering if I sanitized well enough the whole foods order I just received, worrying if my kids are hearing all the worry in my voice and worrying themselves, I mean I could go on and on.
I honestly feel like worry has been almost a mainstay especially with all the uncertainty. Something that I have found to help me keep perspective is my morning routine. I read a short chapter of the Bible just about every morning and then I sit and think for just a few minutes of all the things that I am thankful for before my morning yoga stretches. This obviously helps me get my mind right first thing in the morning. I make sure to think of the…Oh, soooo many blessings I have to be thankful for. For starters, the breath in my lungs every morning I wake up is a primary example. Then I work on my breathing with my morning stretches and try to continue to think on my blessings, my goals, and whatever the message was that morning. The other day my morning “daily verse” was “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life” Luke 12:25. This particular message really resonated with me because, man oh man I feel like worrying is about all I do as a mom.
Let’s again revisit this wonderful list of worry. I worry about, my kids, their health, their wellbeing, their happiness, their safety, I worry about my husband’s health, his wellbeing, his happiness, his safety, I worry about my own in all of those areas, I worry about my parents, my family, just how everything is going to get done, if finances are going to be an issue down the line with COVID-19, what will happen to the overall economy, what will school look like come fall, will I be the teacher again at home with my kids, how will I manage that if that is the case, with all the politics what is going to happen come this fall, what is going to happen with our nation if it continues to divide, did I yell to harshly this last time with my kids, am I yelling too much, not enough, in what ways am I screwing them up and can I fix it, am I setting a good example, am I too much of a helicopter mom, am I too strict, am I not strict enough, will my husband and I eventually grow apart, will my husband and I ever sizzle/fizzle out, will my sex drive fade, will he continue to find me attractive as I age, what’s on the menu for dinner yet again, did I switch over the laundry, what will we do in the fall for my daughter’s birthday if we are still in quarantine, etc. etc. Yeah, I know, how the hell do I have room for anything else with all that worry.
The fact is, it doesn’t really leave much room for much else. And there is so much more to allow to flourish.
The verse is spot on really. I worry about things that haven’t even happened or may never happen and I let it consume me, instead of allowing more creativity or positive thinking to engulf me. What a waste of space… I mean so much time and negative energy. The verse to me means kind of something like the saying “why worry when you can pray” and worrying is never a solution. It only causes stress and anxiety which…duh, in turn causes health issues… hence definitely not adding any hours to your life that’s for sure. It’s funny, I was worrying about what would happen to my kids if something happened to me when all the while me worry about that only in the end potentially limits my time with them.
It’s funny, the same day as my morning reading, I had a craving for some dark chocolate, it’s my fav and a must. No matter what, I have to have my dark chocolate every couple of days. This day, it was some left-over Easter candy, a single serve DOVE Dark Chocolate. Yummmmm. One thing that is great about the single serve is it also has a little quote inside the wrapper. Mine read, “Embrace Optimism”. Yes, I know, the universe was definitely trying to tell me something.
Jaw dropped starring at the wrapper, I realized the way for me to not worry so much, outside of the realization that I can really only control so much and simply try my very best as a parent, was to be persistently optimistic. That positivity creates positive outcomes. It’s like I tell my kids. Every decision has an outcome. Good decisions usually lead to good outcomes and bad decisions usually lead to bad outcomes, so choose wisely. So yeah, I think I need to take a tip from myself and decide to think positively and embrace the possibility for great outcomes.
So, let’s recap, if you worry, you get worry lines. If you worry, you may affect your weight, your hair, skin and nails, your health, your sleep, your mood etc. When you worry, it is not actually creating any solutions or fixing any potential problems. If you think positively and choose to be optimistic you may get better sleep, better health, less stress, smile more, have enthusiasm, encourage others and yourself, and create a bit more room in your life for things that bring you up rather than feel like they are swallowing you whole. Hmmm… I think I know which I am going to choose and begin working on.
It’s going to take some work, I know. I feel like as a woman I am preprogrammed to worry in some ways. So, baby steps. With that said, I am going to challenge myself and each of you if this maybe hits home for you too. The next thirty days I am going to actively do something each day beyond my morning routine to help remind me to be positive, to think clearly, to share love, and to embrace optimism.
Starting with day one.
1. Fill your Instagram with positivity and let your peeps know what you are working on. Then follow someone or an organization that inspires you.
Be on the lookout for each day’s inspiration on my Facebook and Instagram feeds!!
And let’s do this, let’s not let worry consume us and step up and step out with some positive vibes instead!
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