Do you ruminate? It’s the nice word for worrying or beating something to death. If you do it, you’re like a cow chewing its cud. You worry, over think, over analyze things, spit them out, then pick them back up and go over and over it again until your brain is fried. It’s painful.
Why do you do it? Why can’t you just stop it? One reason: You have no real skills to implement change.
Here’s the deal. Worry is killing you. You can change you just have to want to bad enough, and the take the necessary steps to action. You can learn to stop ruminating and begin living a more peaceful life. Here’s how:
- Practice Relaxation
- Meditate and Pray
- Exercise
- Set Aside Worry Time
- Talk
- Create Stress relieving coping thoughts
- Notice your self talk
Whenever we come under stress our bodies are primed for a fight or flight response. Body tension is a cue to begin to practice relaxation. But you have to notice it. When you’re use to feeling stress all the time, it becomes normal to feel stressed. It’s like walking around with a low-grade fever and not knowing your sick. So start noticing and training yourself to recognize your body’s signals. Relaxation is key to stress reduction and thought calming.
Worry is fueled by fear. Over and over the Bible instructs us to “fear not,” but we have to have something to replace the fearful thinking with; that’s faith. We have to intentionally set our minds against fear. Try making a list of bible verses to meditate and pray over that speaks against fear.
Exercise releases endorphins, the feel good chemicals in our brains. Find some type of exercise you enjoy and stick with it. It will act as a great distraction too and make you look and feel better.
If you have to ruminate, set aside 15 minutes in the morning or evening to do so. With each worry or fear ask yourself the following:
- What do I believe about this situation?
- What is the worst that can happen?
- How will I handle it if it does?
Answering these questions will give you insight into the beliefs that drive your fears.
Talk out your worries with someone who is safe. Get another perspective. Remember there is wisdom in counsel, so seek it from those you respect.
To rid yourself of ruminating, you have to create some positive counterstatements and coping thoughts to refute the negative self-talk. Make a list of positive coping thoughts and be sure to avoid statements that begin with “I can’t…. I’m overwhelmed… I’ll never.
Finally, but most importantly, NOTICE. Train yourself to pay attention to your thoughts and your physical body. Remember statistics show that stress and worry make up six of the leading causes of disease.
If you’re tired of beating things to death in your mind and getting nowhere, it’s time for a change. Start today by taking a few small steps and see what happens. You’ll love the freedom!
Wow! What an outstanding post, Rita!
“You have no real skills to implement change.” Umm, y’know, that *really* sums up a lot, Rita!
I was sharing in an e-mail with some friends recently. I asked them three questions.
1) Can a person change?
2) Do *I* want to change?
3) *How* do I change?
Your post says the same thing, I different way.
Thanks, Rita!
Norm