Dr. Laura Blog

I wish that every time I worried about something, it got resolved. However, life doesn’t work that way. Worrying has no power to make anything better. Here are 4 things you can do the next time you start to fall down the rabbit hole:

1. Distract yourself.

Take a hot bath, go for a run, or do something to activate your senses and divert your attention.  

2. Breathe.

Breathe in for five seconds, hold for five seconds, and then breathe out for five seconds.

3. Repeat a mantra.

You’ll notice on my show that I give people mantras to help them get back on track:

• “I believe in myself.”

• “I’m in charge of how I feel right now, and I’m not going to let this take control.”

• “My body is freaking out, I’m scared out of my mind, but I know I’m OK.”

4. Recite the Serenity Prayer.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change...”

Probably the most frequent issue I help people with on my program is letting go of things they have zero control over. Don’t shorten your life by being a nervous wreck over something that can’t be fixed.

“…the courage to change the things I can...”

Another area people have trouble with is courage. One of the reasons you continue to bang on a door that will never open is that you’re afraid to find another door and walk through it. It’s easier to be the martyr and suffer and bang. It’s harder to have the courage to do something different. 

“…and the wisdom to know the difference.” 

When you’re worried, scared, anxious, or vulnerable, your first instinct is to hide and not let others get close to you. But do you know what happens when you isolate yourself? You’re stuck with YOU. And it just gets worse and worse and worse…