How often do you find yourself stressing about upcoming commitments, events that sometimes aren't until a few weeks, months, or even years away?
I've been there a lot, but luckily I'm here to tell you an effective strategy to lessen the anguish, and cultivate a wiser relationship with your pain.
The strategy goes as follows: Whenever I find myself dreading something in the future, I remind myself that that event is not happening now, and that when it happens, I'll deal with it. But until then, I'm here, doing this, so I might as well pay attention to what I've got in front of me.
It sounds simple, because it is. It doesn't need to be more complicated than that. A simple nudge back to the present moment is all we need. It's just that, we need this nudge quite often.
In fact, most of us could use the nudge just about every moment of our lives. But that's okay. There's nothing wrong with being brought back to the present. That's where we live, so we might as well be here with our full attention.
The truth is, I dread a lot of things. I spend a lot of time worrying about things that could happen, the almighty "what if," and I've learned that this pattern destroys my life.
How can I appreciate, let alone enjoy the beauty in front of me, if I'm being crippled by the anxiety of something that could happen in two weeks?
I understand it could happen, but it's not happening! That's the punchline. It is not happening, so why am I making such a melodrama about something that simply isn't real?
I'm always catching myself, which is different than where I was before, which was stuck in the pattern without any awareness of it. At least now I'm aware, so I can step in when I notice my mind complaining about the possibility of a future event.
Whenever possible, I remind myself where I am now, what I'm doing, and most importantly, that I can handle the future when it comes.
I know you can too. You know you can too.
Live with substance!
Gabe Orlowitz
