Notes To My Younger Self:

photo credit: highcrountrynews.com

The wolf of worry will hunt you. When you start to feel anxious, slow down, and think about the stories you’re creating in your head. Once you’re aware of what you’re thinking, understand that you are in control of your thoughts, you are—not circumstances—the one who’s making you anxious. Being that you are in control of you and therefore creating your own stress, use these tools to shift your spinning thoughts. Step one: Ask, what am I feeling right now? (Are you scared? Angry? Afraid? Tired? Nervous? Hungry? Lonely? Sad? Envious? Afraid of being rejected or vulnerable? Worrying about what others think?) Two: What is that feeling telling you? (Are you worrying about things that haven’t happened yet or focusing way down the road in the future?) Three: What do I need to see that I might be missing? (Have you gathered facts or are you creating a story based on what you think could happen/be happening?) Four: Consider in the moment what is possible? What can I do differently? (List all the possibilities.) Five: Think about what’s true for me right now or what’s my truth? Then based on the information you’ve gathered, speak out loud about your feelings, what you think, what you want and move forward by setting healthy, fact-driven boundaries. Walk through these steps anytime you start to spin and send the wolf of worry on to another’s thoughts to prey on.

E.L. Chappel author of Spirit Dance/Storm Makers/Coming very soon: The Surge

You are always in control of the stories you tell yourself.

aka The Glamorous Wife