When to Pay Attention to Your Worries

Worry is a natural human emotion and it plays an important role in keeping us safe. Worry can prevent catastrophe, avoid big problems, and be quite constructive. Worry can motivate people to take action and be more mindful. 

Worry Aids Prevention

In Australia, wildfires have become a common occurrence. Worrying about the potential for losing property or lives to fire triggers communities to take precautions to reduce the risk. If you have a family history of heart disease, worry can help prompt you to eat better, see your health consultant regularly and be mindful of heart health. 

It’s good to pay attention to worries when they are rooted in facts and issues that may happen. While it’s good to secure your home against fire and eat right and exercise to avoid heart disease, ruminating on these issues is taking things too far. 

Is it Intuition or Overthinking?   

Our bodies are wired with an inner GPS that helps us avoid trouble. Also known as the lizard brain, the limbic system helps us recognize threats so we aren’t killed. This suited the cave man so he wasn’t eaten by predators, but also serves modern man by sending signals from the brain that something deserves attention.

Worrying about walking into a dark alley at night is a good thing. We should be alert and aware of our surroundings and failing to worry about what might happen could lead to tragedy. 

In the same way, our intuition, or inner radar, alerts us to subtleties that can keep us safe emotionally, physically, financially, and otherwise. Paying attention to our intuition is important. Having a filter in place to screen what’s going on is helpful. 

Overthinking is different than intuition because it includes ongoing, non-stop thoughts that overexaggerate and lead to worst-case scenarios. Overthinking also takes things out of context and can personalize them or make them dramatic needlessly. While intuition is a gut feeling, overthinking tends to be an overwhelming fixation on an issue. 

Pay Attention and Take Appropriate Action

If you’re worried about something, take action. Pay attention when your gut or intuition is triggered. Trust yourself that you know when something needs attention and that you have what it takes to take care of it.

Be confident and willing to address a situation so you don’t get stuck overthinking rather than taking action. 

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Remember I believe in you xx

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