Three Solutions to your Worst Fears
Anxiety is the overwhelming sense of fear of a hypothetical or anticipated threat. In addition to feeling fearful or apprehensive, an anxious person often experiences self-doubt in their ability to cope with the imagined threat or worst-case scenario. Physical symptoms include built-up tension in muscles, increased perspiration, and heightened heart rate.
The first thing you should know if you suffer from anxiety is that you’re not alone. In fact, anxiety affects 40 million adults—or 18.1% of the population—in the US, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Fortunately, anxiety is treatable by therapy and medication but, most importantly, perspective. Anxious people can work on redirecting their anxiety without guidance or a prescription by becoming more aware of these hypothetical situations they worry about and by coming back to the present moment. Here are several practical solutions to three common fears, so you can stop worrying and start living.
Your HealthHealthcare has been the most common concern among Americans for the third year in a row now. 55% of Americans reported worrying “a great deal” about the availability and affordability of healthcare, according to a national survey conducted earlier this year. Unfortunately, healthcare reform takes years and there’s never a universal solution that can ease everyone’s minds.
However, leaving your anxiety to brew for that long won’t help your health either. Anxiety can cause additional health problems like panic attacks, shallow breathing, fatigue, and a multitude of aches and pains from headaches to an upset stomach. It can also hijack your mood, lead to depression, and affect your sex drive. Here are some ways you can take ownership of your health and protect your well-being:
Your MoneyYou—along with 99% of us—wonder how we’ll afford this or that and when we’ll finally get out of debt on top of all the other what-if’s that crop up. I’m no financial advisor and I’m drowning in student loan debt myself, but I’ve found my way over the hump of hopelessness and used the three strategies to cope with my money worries:
The first thing you should know if you suffer from anxiety is that you’re not alone. In fact, anxiety affects 40 million adults—or 18.1% of the population—in the US, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Fortunately, anxiety is treatable by therapy and medication but, most importantly, perspective. Anxious people can work on redirecting their anxiety without guidance or a prescription by becoming more aware of these hypothetical situations they worry about and by coming back to the present moment. Here are several practical solutions to three common fears, so you can stop worrying and start living.
Your HealthHealthcare has been the most common concern among Americans for the third year in a row now. 55% of Americans reported worrying “a great deal” about the availability and affordability of healthcare, according to a national survey conducted earlier this year. Unfortunately, healthcare reform takes years and there’s never a universal solution that can ease everyone’s minds.
However, leaving your anxiety to brew for that long won’t help your health either. Anxiety can cause additional health problems like panic attacks, shallow breathing, fatigue, and a multitude of aches and pains from headaches to an upset stomach. It can also hijack your mood, lead to depression, and affect your sex drive. Here are some ways you can take ownership of your health and protect your well-being:
- Move more—I hesitate to prescribe “exercise” in this article because exercise and fitness can also be a cause for anxiety in itself. We’re all busy and it can be difficult to fit in a full-body workout on a regular basis. Instead, I suggest simply moving more often, which could be as easy as stretching in the morning while your coffee brews, taking the stairs at work, or walking the dog in the evening.
- Eat better—Diet changes should be made in moderation. Jumping aboard a fad diet bandwagon will inevitably lead to burnout and cause you more anxiety that’s rooted in the feeling of failure. Reflect on your diet and take a closer look at your pantry. Next time you make a grocery list, include more produce and less packaged snacks.
- Sleep well—The exact amount of sleep an individual needs varies, but seven hours is the new eight, according to a report in the Archives of General Psychiatry.
- Shift your search--Seven of 10 millennials fear it will be difficult for them to get a mortgage and 9% have given up their search for a home altogether. These hopeful home buyers may be going at their search the wrong way though. Instead of focusing on what you can’t afford, figure out what you can afford. Dave Ramsey, suggests calculating your income, living expenses, and prospective homeownership costs and adjusting your budget accordingly. If you’re worried about affording a down payment, you could qualify for an FHA loan with a down payment as low as 3.5%. You may also need to start house hunting in a new city. Huntsville, Alabama was recognized as the most affordable place to live in 2018, but here are 24 more cities to explore.
- Home protection plans—Homeowners are required to have home insurance, which will cover your house and personal belongings in the case of theft or disaster. This should ease your mind from hypothetical situations like fires and burglaries. However, home insurance does not cover more common, everyday problems like broken appliances. This winter, you may be worrying about your 19-year-old water heater breaking. How will you afford to fix it? Will you have to bathe your children in cold water? In these cases, homeowners can enjoy peace of mind by investing in a home warranty, which covers the repair and replacement costs of major appliances and systems.
- Technology you can trust—One-third of Americans expect to feel anxious about the security of their home this holiday season, according to the latest Travel Mindfulness Report. The survey suggests smart home technology, like a smart lighting control system, may be the answer to these worries. If you can afford to invest in a new alarm system or the latest technological device, then consider the extra security as money well-spent. If you’re strapped for extra cash, you can go the tried-and-true route of knocking on a neighbor’s door, giving them your contact information, and letting them know when you’ll be back. Another option is to hire a house sitter through a secure platform.
Your MoneyYou—along with 99% of us—wonder how we’ll afford this or that and when we’ll finally get out of debt on top of all the other what-if’s that crop up. I’m no financial advisor and I’m drowning in student loan debt myself, but I’ve found my way over the hump of hopelessness and used the three strategies to cope with my money worries:
- Reality-based budgeting—You can beat yourself up all day about how much money you think you should save, but it’s much more effective—and encouraging—to budget based on how much you can save. I made a wallet-changing discovery after college by calculating how much I spent in the past three months and what I spent it on. I used those eye-opening numbers to allocate realistic percentages of my monthly income to three major categories: essential living expenses (rent or mortgage, utilities, transportation, and groceries), personal choices (clothes, restaurants, gifts, etc.), and debt (student loans and credit card payments). After six months of budgeting this way, I was able to afford a fourth category—savings.
- Baby steps away from debt--Debt—be it student loans, credit card, or past due bills—is overwhelming. Most of us can’t just pay off a loan by saving for a few months and writing a check. However, a lot of us can benefit from focusing on one bill at a time. The first step is the hardest—listing your debts from least to greatest. You’ll have to continue making minimum payments on all of these debts except for the smallest one, which you’ll pay off as much as possible. As soon as the smallest debt is paid, you’ll get some hard-earned relief and you’ll be able to roll that old monthly payment over to the next smallest debt. Dave Ramsey calls this The Snowball Method.
- Invest in the present--Anyone can worry about what the future holds. You can worry about getting a flat tire on the way home from work today and you can worry about your house catching on fire one day. You can anticipate the oven breaking on Thanksgiving, losing your job, or never affording your dream house. However, you—and only you—hold all of the power to put these anxieties and the million other worries you construct on a daily basis to rest. You must take a step back away from your thoughts and into the present moment for the present is a rich experience you don’t want to miss.