Almost everyone knows at least one person could very easily be considered a worrywart. Worrywart is a term that is used to describe someone seems to worry about everything under the sun. This person will worry about any and everything he/she can imagine may happen. Commonly, overprotective parents are known as worrywarts. While this may seem harmless and as nothing more than an annoyance for the person being overly worried about, it is actually quite dangerous in terms of health. Studies have shown that people who are chronic worriers are prone to many undesirable side effects as a result. In fact, there is even research to support the idea that chronic worrying may actually shorten a person’s lifespan.
Link Between Worrying and Stress
Most people are already aware that stress and anxiety have severe effects on people’s health. Because of this it stands to reason that anyone who is constantly worried may be a higher risk for health complications as a result of stress. There is such a wide variety of negative health effects caused by stress that it is almost impossible to list all of them. To put it quite simply, stress affects every area of your life. Stress and worrying seem to go hand-in-hand. That is, if you know someone who is highly stressed, there is a very good chance that this person could also be classified as a chronic worrier. In the same way, a person who worries most of the time will almost always have extremely high levels of stress in their life. It seems that if you can do away with one, the other just may follow. The question is what can be done about worrying? The truth is there is no easy answer. Every situation is different and may call for different measures. However, one thing is for sure; stress must be removed or at least significantly reduced in order to realize a better sense of overall health.
How to Eliminate Worrying
Unfortunately, a person who has conditioned themselves to worry on a constant basis will have quite a task at hand in overcoming this character defect. Usually, worrying chronically is just written off as part of the person’s genetic makeup. Because of this family members and friends of the worrier often tend to just accept the person and their tendency to worry. However, worrying is something that is a learned behavior and therefore can be changed. The best way to eliminate worrying is to start by examining which situations we have power over and which ones we don’t. For example, we have absolutely no power over whether or not a loved one will is step out in front of a bus on the way home from work or school. Therefore worrying about this on a constant basis will not help. Then there are situations we do have control over and in these situations we can eliminate worry by addressing the problem and finding a solution. This is often true in matters of finance. Worrying about money will not help pay the bills however affirmative action on your part will. The bottom line here is; unless a situation can be fixed or controlled by you, a good rule of thumb would be not to worry about it.
How Exactly Does Worrying Shorten Your Life?
The answer to this question is quite simple. Worrying leads to stress and stress has been linked with a number of health problems. People who suffer from high levels of stress are much more prone to cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal issues, weight problems and there has even been a link made between stress levels and certain cancers. In addition, stress can lead to severe clinical depression which of course can even lead to suicide. Not only can stress shorten your lifespan, but it will also have an effect on the overall quality of your life. If you are constantly busy with worrying and stress, you may not have time to enjoy the simpler things in life. People who do not waste their time worrying over things they cannot control usually enjoy their lives much more.
Visit the Self-Help Section
If you are looking for techniques to help reduce the amount of stress you have in your life or just looking for new methods to help eliminate your worrying, the self-help section at your favorite bookstore or library may be a great place to start. Because of the attention stress related illnesses have received in the past several decades, there are many books and a lot of reference to help people learn new and exciting ways of overcoming stress and chronic worrying. In addition, there are also many DVDs and even audio books, as well as guided meditation that have been created specifically to help someone relax and let worry and stress go. You can even go a step further and visit a hypnotist who specializes in guided meditation and relaxation techniques. There are even some people who turn to acupuncture as a form of relieving stress. The bottom line is no matter what method you use to get rid of stress, the most important thing is that you do. Not only may it extend your life but it will also improve the quality of the time you spend here.
There are a lot of treatments available for anxiety and stress related conditions. Sometimes, a person who is suffering from high levels of stress and cannot seem to get their worrying under control must seek professional help. In other cases, meditation and relaxation techniques can be utilized to help overcome stress and worrying. Not only does getting rid of stress and freeing yourself of worry help to improve the quality of your life, but your loved ones will surely appreciate the change as well.
Very helpful food for thought