Anxiety in the modern world.
In a world that’s so fast paced, complex and full of high expectations is it any wonder people are struggling with anxiety?
It’s easy to put our own needs aside, then one day we look up and everything feels chaotic and overwhelming, it can be hard to know where to begin when this happens. Making some space for your own needs is a delicate balancing act but when done effectively it ends up being the oil that helps the cogs turn smoothly.
When things feel like they're getting on top of me, taking a step back helps me to gain some perspective and figure out what step to take next. It can feel like the last thing you want to do amongst work deadlines, bills to pay, houses to run, parental responsibilities, relationships to maintain, finding some time and space for yourself even just 5 minutes can help to straighten out the brain scribble into somewhat of a neater line or picture.
The amount of to-do lists I write to try and visualise my plans is impressive, the amount of to-do lists I complete is less so. But even the process of writing down my thoughts helps me to get them out of my mind and onto paper, which either get achieved or don't turn out to be a priority and that's ok too.
Writing precise to-do lists like:
Make the bed.
Get out of bed (easier said than done sometimes)
Straighten the pillows
Pull the covers up
Straighten the bedding
Fold the clothes.
Take clothes out of clean basket
Fold clothes into manageable piles
Put the clothes away.
Put clothes in wardrobe
Put socks into sock draw
Hang up jackets
Instead of vague to-do lists like:
Clean the bedroom.
Offers more opportunities to achieve the goals you set. Each tick or scribbling out on the to-do list is a bump of dopamine (the reward hormone) and can snowball into a fully completed activity rather than something you wanted to do but couldn't start. Not only can breaking down an activity help to complete it, it can also help you to manage the guilt that follows an uncompleted goal. Plus if you get distracted by any number of things you know where you got up to by looking at the list.
I found that being realistic to you and your situation and starting with seemingly small tasks really is the key. Like the falling of small stones that start an avalanche of change… And if you were wondering, yes that is an edited version of a quote from my favorite film series.
