Episode 68: The Worry Solution
Summary:
This episode is the first in a series about releasing the mental weight with weight loss. Often what causes us to overeat or over drink are general life issues and this series is designed to take a closer look at what those are and what we can do about it. In this episode Molly focuses her attention on worry.
Worry is an indulgent emotion, by giving in we are spending our mental, emotional and physical energy on something happening or something that might happen. Often times, when worry becomes a habit, we are anxious and uncertain about something that may never happen. We become worked up over a problem that hasn’t even happened yet and as a result we are wasting valuable time and energy and not actually solving any problems. Molly dives into what causes us to worry and shares three key questions we can ask ourselves to help release this emotion.
When we get stuck in a cycle of worry it’s easy to feel powerless and to stop thinking about what we can actually do. When it comes to weight loss, this can make it really difficult to stay on a plan or to make any progress. Molly stresses that this emotion is totally unnecessary and by focusing on some easy steps, she provides a way out of worry so that you can begin to feel empowered to make actual changes in your life and live a life you feel good about.
If you’re interested in the support or accountability a one-on-one coach provides, you can set up a free discovery call with Molly here.
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Topics Covered
There are a lot of commonalities between clients about what triggers an urge or what triggers a plan to eat or eating a lot more than you need to and one of those triggers is worry.
Definition of worry: a state of anxiety or uncertainty over actual or impending problems. You’re feeling anxious or uncertain about something happening or something that might happen.
Our brains default is to look for problems to keep us safe, but when this manifests as worry all that does is create problems ahead of time because we feel anxious or stressed. This produces a fear of something that might happen but it’s just as likely that it might not.
Any time we worry it’s coming from the feeling of fear or concern and keeps you from taking action because it’s a feeling of powerlessness, a lack of control.
The way to combat this is to consider a worry free diet – if you’re thinking it’s not something you can’t control it’s because you’ve built a habit of indulging in a pattern of worry.
Three key questions to help release worry
What would I need to believe about this situation instead?
Everything is happening exactly how it’s supposed to
Why resist reality? Why fight against what is? Learn how to acknowledge and accept it and deal with it as is.
Sometimes things work out better than they are supposed to.
Use your mental and physical energy to make your life better
If this is how things are meant to happen, what do I want to learn from this situation?
What is this situation there to tell you?
Shift into curiosity about what’s happening to you or about what actions you take. If you’re able to accept and be curious it can turn into a lesson or valuable experience that you can benefit from.
What is the best-case scenario that could happen? This is especially useful to ask if you are worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet
Brain defaults to worst-case scenario to create a lot of problems ahead of time anticipating something awful. It’s just as probable that things could work out well.
Consuming yourself with stress and anxiety leads to overeating or over drinking
You may not be able to control what happens but you can control the reality you create in your mind
What do I have control over right now?
Immediately shifts attention back to the present moment.
Do I have everything I need, right now? Chances are you are in a pretty good situation right now. Remind yourself that things are pretty good, right now. Maybe not perfect but they are likely good enough, and it’s helpful to remind yourself of that.
There is a lot more under your control than you might think
You have no control over how somebody feels or what they choose to do – always shift the focus back to you and what you have control over in your own life
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