Worry isn’t fun, is it? Imagine how different your life would be if worry did not exist. Your thinking would be clear, decisions would be easier, and you would be much more productive. You would be relaxed and healthier. And you would certainly smile a lot more, with an enhanced ability to enjoy life!

Many of us believe that our worries would go away if only things outside of us would change for the better. Surely if our circumstances improved, or that certain family member would change his or her behavior, then we could stop worrying. Or maybe if world events changed for the better, then we could end our personal stream of anxiety.

The only problem with these ideas is that many of these circumstances are beyond our control. We may have some influence, but the final outcomes are likely due to a combination of other things as well.

The best way to deal with worry is to realize that you do not need it in order to solve your problems. In fact, worry is likely to stand in the way of your ability to find the very solutions you are looking for.

Start by gaining a new perspective

The first thing to do if you want to banish worry from your experience is to separate it from the events in your life. Worry is like a sticky, toxic energy that weaves its way into your perception and causes everything to look much more dire than it likely is. It presupposes bad outcomes, and ignores the very real possibility of success and positive experiences.

Unless you separate worry from the actual circumstance, you will continue to believe that your anxiety is relevant. The next time you find yourself worrying about something, stop for a moment and notice your experience of the worry itself. Pay attention to the experience by asking yourself some questions:

• What does worry feel like overall?
• What are the body sensations?
• Is your stomach tight? Your chest? Your face? Are your muscles tense?
• Does it feel like a sticky, nasty fog has just enveloped your mind?
• Does your energy feel bottled up and stuck?

Pretend for a moment that this experience of worry is something completely detached from everything else. At this point, you will begin to realize that worry has a difficult time sustaining itself when it is separated from the events in your life. Its appearance of being something of substance will begin to evaporate the more that you do this. When you pry it away from your circumstances, it simply has no fuel with which to continue its existence.

As you look at the experience of worry for what it is, and disconnect that experience from everything else, you can literally watch it disappear!

What happens next?

Once you experience that moment of disappearance on the part of worry, you will see that the circumstance that the worry was attached to still exists. It is critical that you do not allow the worry to reattach itself, which it will most certainly try to do. This will happen because there is a false belief that worry somehow protects you from having a negative experience related to that circumstance. Thus worry portrays itself as a survival mechanism designed to protect you.

But here is the flaw in that belief: Worry is like a dirty window on a car. If you are driving down a road that has all sorts of obstacles on it, the last thing you need is a windshield full of mud. Worry is like that mud. It seizes control of your mind and your energy, so you can no longer see the problem with a clear eye. It completely clouds your vision with fear. Now you are much more likely to make bad decisions, or you may even feel paralyzed and unable to do anything at all.

Think about it. If your windshield was full of mud on a challenging road, you would either stop the car and not move, or you would keep going, steer wrongly, and run into something painful.

Separating worry from the problem or circumstance is like cleaning the windshield on your car, so you can see clearly again. Now your energy can flow, and your mind can be divinely illuminated with creative solutions to whatever your problem is. You are much more likely to know exactly what to do. You will be much more able to see and understand all of your options.

Remember that the key is to separate worry from whatever the circumstance is, in the same way that you separate the mud from the car’s windshield when you clean it.

Some additional ideas to assist you in banishing worry 

Once you understand worry as an experience that needs to be separated from the circumstance or problem that you want to solve, you can apply the following ideas to assist you in gaining back your strength:

1) – When you have a problem or situation that is causing you distress, what you need the most is clarity. You need to be able to see a solution. Worry impedes your ability to be clear because it is 100% negative by nature. It eclipses any vision of a positive outcome.

2) – Worry is similar to the following: It’s as if someone grabs your head and says, “Look over here! Look at the worst possible outcome! Don’t look at anything else!” This is ridiculous because there is always an array of possible great and positive outcomes, even if you don’t see them right now. Why can’t you equally expect the positive? Worry doesn’t want you to do that. If you did, then guess what – no more need for worry!

3) –  Set yourself on a course of positively improving your life. Simply decide to do it, even if you don’t know how. The decision comes first, and then the means can reveal themselves to you. If you passively wait for things to improve on their own, you become a magnet for worrisome thoughts.

4) – Take definite steps, one by one, to make the improvements that you seek. Even baby steps are good. The most important thing is to be consistent, and acknowledge the fact that you are taking control of the reins of your life by making decisions and following through.

The more that you do this, the less you will worry, because worry is a state of feeling out of control. Acknowledge yourself for each and every positive step you take, no matter how small. Try to acknowledge yourself every day. Even if you make mistakes, acknowledge yourself for recognizing them and learning from the experience.

5) – Remember your divine connection. You have God and the angels always available to lend a helping hand and guide you towards miracles, if you are open to it. Worry closes your mind and heart to be able to receive this help. Worry tells you that you are a sitting duck, who is all alone.

6) – You should also know that worry is not intuition. Worry is fear-based and actually impedes intuition, because it only acknowledges negative outcomes. Thus, worry is not realistic. Intuition, on the other hand, always seeks to guide you toward your highest path. It is your connection to a higher state of intelligence, where you are able to see various outcomes, and then choose the best one for you.  Intuition is like an invisible hand that leads you towards the light. Worry is the opposite. It will lead you toward the basement of your darkest fears.

7) – And finally, remember that worry itself is your real enemy; not the situation that you are worried about. Whatever the circumstance is, there is always a way to improve things. Separate worry from that circumstance, and you will deprive it of the oxygen that it needs to survive. As worry dissipates, you will find yourself regaining clarity and strength. You will realize that things are never as bad as worry makes them seem. There is always something you can do to make things better for yourself, and thus eliminate the problems that trouble you.

What are your thoughts about worry and anxiety in general? Would you like to try out these ideas for yourself? Share with me in the comments below!