Occasional worry about a job interview, unpaid bills, or your relationship’s future is a perfectly normal part of being human. However, sometimes, anxiety can take over your life. In that case, you need to learn how to stop worrying too much.
Excessive worry can make you unable to move forward and realize your dreams. This is because it comes with the risk of becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. When you worry that bad things will happen, it increases your risk of attracting precisely such circumstances.
For example, if you worry about your boss criticizing you, you might subconsciously act in a way that attracts criticism. If you fear that your partner would cheat, you might start pressuring them too much for no real reason. In effect, they might truly find another.
As Marisa Peer, a world-renowned therapist and expert in the workings of the mind, put it:
“Every thought you think and every word you say forms a blueprint, and your mind works to make it into reality.”
This article will help you become free from anxiety and start living life to the fullest. We give you tried-and-tested tools and techniques to get rid of excessive worry, quickly and permanently.
You will learn:
Is My Worry Extreme?
Worry, stress, and anxiety are all normal experiences—unless they grow out of proportion. Normal worry comes and goes. It is typically tied to a cause. Once you’ve dealt with a problem, the worry disappears too.
On the other hand, excessive worry is a bit more diffused. It often doesn’t have a clear source and doesn’t go away when you resolve the problem. It only gets replaced by the next anxious preoccupation.
Here’s an example: You got fired from a job. It’s normal to feel worried about how you will pay your bills. Some level of apprehension about the uncertain future is natural. Yet, you face the problem and go out in search of a new job. As soon as you get admitted to the next position, your worries vanish.
However, excessive worry would not stop at bills or insecurity about what the future holds. It would also not help you be constructive nor would it end when you got a new job.
Getting fired would trigger a flood of anxiety that is out of proportion. You would possibly imagine you and your children (even if you had none) becoming homeless or getting ill, and all your friends abandoning you.
The stress of getting fired would turn into an unstoppable rush of negativity that would incapacitate you to actually go out and find a new job. Even if you did find it, you would probably keep worrying about, “What if I lost this job too…?”
When you worry all the time, you are missing out on life. You probably feel compelled to try and foresee all the worst-case scenarios in any situation. Yet, while you are focusing on “what-ifs,” you are not actively living your life.
How excessive worry can affect your life
As an outcome of constant worry, your career, love life, and friendships could be suffering.
If you don’t know how to stop worrying, you might also fear love and true intimacy as they might lead to being hurt. When you are acting on those fears, you are depriving yourself of the chance of experiencing true love.
Do you play it too safe in your career because taking the initiative sounds too risky? Unfortunately, when you cannot stop worrying, you are effectively self-sabotaging your chances of advancing.
Friendships and family relationships are also jeopardized by too much worry.
Quality relationships require spontaneity. Let’s say you are preparing for a road trip with your friends and family. If you don’t know how to stop worrying about a myriad of things that could go wrong, you’ll probably have a hard time unwinding, relaxing, and enjoying the good times.
What Causes Excessive Worry?
Excessive worrying can have many causes. You may have been a worrier all of your life. On the other hand, you could have grown into anxiety as an adult after a life-changing event.
If you are wondering: “Why am I so anxious?” these are the most probable reasons:
Anxiety spectrum disorders
Extreme worry is the hallmark of anxiety spectrum disorders. Such unwarranted but overwhelming anxiety can hijack your life.
Anxiety disorders come in a variety of shapes. The most common one is generalized anxiety disorder. If you have it, you feel constantly worried—often without knowing what it is exactly that worries you. The anxious thoughts are exaggerated, but it seems there is no way to control them.
Luckily, there are remarkable “anti-anxiety” tools and techniques available. We will speak about them shortly.
Childhood experiences
If you are prone to worrying about every “what-if” that crosses your mind, it is possible that your upbringing wired you for it.
For example, you could have had a mother who was inconsistent or unavailable. Having consistent tender care makes us feel safe in the world. Sometimes, however, the primary caregiver cannot provide this for us. As a result, we don’t have a secure environment to grow up in.
If this is the case for you, you did not grow up with a feeling of, “My mom will keep me safe.” Instead, you developed a profound need to overthink everything that could possibly go wrong to make yourself feel safe and in control. Therefore, you do not know how to stop worrying.
Adult trauma
Sometimes, we survive a trauma that changes us. You might have been a perfectly confident person before it happened. Then, you met the wrong person. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Whatever it might’ve been, you were wounded.
Trauma alters how we see the world around us. As a result, you might have started doubting yourself and excessively worrying about how you will handle problems. Since then, your new credo is, “If I worry, I am prepared for the worst.”
Alas, excessive worry does the opposite. It hinders your intellectual abilities to resolve problems constructively. How to stop worrying, then? You need to address the outcomes of the trauma you went through that are hidden deep in your subconscious mind.
We will talk later in this article about Marisa Peer’s Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®) method that directly addresses causes of excessive worry to set you free from the outcomes of your trauma.
Insecurity
For one reason or another, you might feel insecure in the face of challenges. You don’t need to have had experienced trauma or an unhappy childhood. Some people cannot stop worrying because they simply feel unconfident.
You might not see your worth and ability to handle problems. Instead, all you see are worst-case scenarios—in love, your career, and your overall future. For example, when you prepare for a date, you fear rejection. When in a relationship, you are convinced your partner would abandon you.
So, how to stop worrying if you are plagued by self-doubt? It could sound impossible to you right now. However, with the right tools, it is not only possible—it can be done in a matter of days. All you need is the right kind of help.
How Do I Stop Constant Worrying?
What ties all the causes of chronic worrying together? Subconsciousness. The roots of your inability to stop worrying reside in your subconscious mind.
You might have internalized parental messages and beliefs about your lack of worth.
You could have come to see the world as a dangerous place after trauma.
Excessive worry might also be a defense mechanism to prevent future pain and disappointment.
In either case, this is now part of your subconscious mind.
How to stop worrying when the causes are hidden from your consciousness? We give you several tried-and-tested ways to stop worrying so you can start enjoying all life’s wonders.
Work with a therapist
Although excessive worry may or may not be a part of an anxiety spectrum disorder, it is an issue that often requires expert help. Why? Because the roots of constant anxiety hide in your subconscious mind. They will elude your attempts to deal with them rationally.
Fortunately, Marisa Peer developed Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®) for you. It is a method combining the best of psychotherapy, hypnotherapy, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). It has been efficient with thousands of clients all over the world and helps a person to transform their excessive worry in just a few sessions.
You can also easily benefit from Marisa Peer’s three decades of experience. She has transferred her knowledge and expertise onto her exceptionally-trained RTT Therapists. Reach out and find an RTT® specialist therapist. They will help you understand your anxiety and teach you how to stop worrying when there is no reason to do so.
Designate time to worry
An unexpected response to the question, “How to stop worrying?” is to schedule some worry time.
Although it may sound counter-intuitive, research revealed that if you do so, you could reduce anxious thoughts and negative emotions associated with them. Additionally, you will sleep better. All in all, you become more capable of dealing with life stresses.
How does it work? When you are trying to avoid worrisome thoughts, they will paradoxically increase. It is much like an instruction not to imagine a pink elephant that never works. By trying not to worry, you only feed more cognitive energy into it.
How to stop worrying by worrying, then? You need to determine the exact time of the day during which you will worry for 30 minutes. An important thing is also to designate a place for worry.
Sit down and allow the avalanche of worries to come to you. Allow yourself to ruminate on all the worst-case scenarios you can think of. After the half-hour of worry passes, close the gate, and move on with your activities.
Anxious thoughts will still be showing up in the non-scheduled time until you gain more practice. When it happens, acknowledge it and promise to think about it when its “appointment” comes.
Gradually, you develop conscious handling of your worry. You start noticing that you control more of it than you initially thought. You also realize that the dreading thought might not be as urgent as you felt it was previously. Overall, you set things to the correct scale and regain control over your life.
Hypnosis for calming anxiety
Hypnosis for anxiety has been proven to be as effective as psychotherapy or medication, but much quicker and without pharmacotherapy’s side effects.
Hypnosis may be the answer if you are wondering, “How do I train my brain to stop worrying?” A recent study revealed that guided hypnosis audios trained the mind to exert greater physical and emotional control. In effect, you are no longer engulfed by excessive worry.
Another study confirmed that self-hypnosis training is a rapid, cost-effective, and safe alternative to medication.
If you are apprehensive because you are preparing for surgery or dealing with severe health issues, hypnosis can help you learn how to stop worrying beyond what is rational.
A study conducted with students who were taught self-hypnosis showed that it helped reduce excessive worry. If you are preparing for an exam or a job interview, hypnosis will stop you feeling helpless. You gain more control over the worrisome thoughts.
Marisa Peer developed an amazing Calmness Bundle for you. It contains three hypnotic audio courses that reduce anxiety, tackle stress, and guide you to a night of better sleep. Together, they lead to an overall increase in your calmness.
Hypnosis reaches deep down into your subconscious fears and insecurities. At the same time, it taps into your inborn potential to address any problem that comes your way. In that way, hypnosis and the Calmness Bundle empower you—for good.
Exercise, socialize, and do hobbies
Exercise might be a predictable bit of advice on how to stop worrying. However, it is only expected because it is so effective.
Scientific research revealed that physical exercise helps reduce stress hormones. It also increases our ability to focus and use our intellectual skills better. As a result, you will be able to control your emotions and your racing thoughts much better.
Another way to ease excessive worry is to socialize. Enjoy a casual coffee with friends or a heart-to-heart conversation about what worries you. Studies show that social support is one of the most powerful ways to reduce anxiety.
Also, keep your mind and hands busy. Engage in hobbies and enjoy the state of flow they give you. Is there anything you like to do that leaves you feeling relaxed and rested? Perhaps it is painting, making jewelry, DIY projects, or fishing?
Exercise, socializing, and doing hobbies are acts of self-care.
When you are taking good care of yourself, you are setting yourself up for success in dealing with any challenge. With an abundant history of accomplishments and triumphs over problems, you will have difficulty maintaining the constant worry mode.
Stop Worrying and Start Living—Right Now
In this article, we gave you four effective methods for how to stop worrying. You can select the one that fits you best. You can also combine them into a super-tool to stop worrying for good.
Whatever you choose, do it now. If you don’t, you are letting another day of your life go by unnoticed. You are spending it preoccupied with things that will probably never really happen.
Stop worrying—and start living right now by joining Marisa Peer’s Confidence Challenge.
The 21-Day Unstoppable Confidence Challenge
What do you think it is that is causing your excessive worry?
Worry can often be rooted in a poor self-esteem or confidence. Perhaps you are worrying about something you don’t think you will be able to handle? Or even, in general, are afraid you won’t be able to cope with much that happens in life?
If you can take productive steps towards improving your confidence, you will find that your worry lessens. When you have instilled in yourself the ability to face the day, and believe yourself capable to handle whatever it throws at you, the vicious cycle of fear, worry, then more fear and more worry, will break.
Designed by popular therapist Marisa Peer, you will receive daily trainings, a selection of audios and meditations, and join a community of those taking on the challenge to build their confidence. Once you have unshakeable confidence and self-esteem, you can break free of your excessive worry for good. Click the banner to find out more about the challenge, and secure your place today.
