Is worry eating away at your mental and emotional wellbeing?

“Don’t worry” is much easier said than done. 

Worrying can feel like a normal part of life. You may feel like you’ve become accustomed to regular feelings of worry and anxiety but that doesn’t make these feelings healthy.

With our society’s 24-hour news cycle and fast-paced lifestyle, worry has become second-nature to many of us.   

If we’re not worried about traffic every morning, we’re worried about how “that” meeting will go. If none of our personal troubles suffices, there’s always the worry about global crises and the long-term climate crisis.  

The truth is that modern life is full of worries and concerns that could occupy all our waking hours. When you internalise worry, however, you end up damaging more than just your peace of mind. Worry can harm your mental and emotional wellbeing, but it can also harm your physical wellbeing over time. 

Internalising worry and letting it run rampant through your mind can lead to a string of harmful events. This may include letting your worry stop you from going after your goals. Over time, you may find that worry even guides your decisions.

It’s not always easy to recognise which emotions are guiding you. Worry can be confused with your gut instincts and be given too much control over what you do. This is harmful for a multitude of reasons.

Worry: It’s not just momentary concern

What is worry, really?

When we talk about our emotions or state of mind, we often neglect to pay enough attention to where these feelings stem from. Worrying is a form of thinking about the future in ways that make you feel anxious or apprehensive.

The key point to note in all of this is that worry takes root in your mind. It lives and dies with your perception.

Your mental and emotional wellbeing may be a slave to your worry but that doesn’t mean that your mind needs to be the same.

Gain better control over your mind and sustain a healthy mental and emotional wellbeing by learning more about mindfulness practices.

How does worrying impact your mental and emotional wellbeing

Feelings of worry pass, the same way that most feelings do. If you find yourself gripped with worry regularly or can’t seem to shake some feeling of dread, then you may be experiencing chronic worry.

Chronic worry is a symptom of Generalised Anxiety Disorder.

Anxiety is more than just worry or fear. Those who suffer from Generalised Anxiety Disorder may suffer from intense feelings of worry and fear for the majority of their days. These can interfere with their work and life and lead to damaging feelings of isolation and poor mental health.

How different would your mental and emotional wellbeing be without worry?

This shouldn’t be a rhetorical question. When it comes to mental health, we often take it for granted. That is until poor mental health problems set in and become a permanent fixture in our lives.

When it comes to our emotions, there can be no negotiation. Just like we try our best to cling to positive emotions, we also try our best to push away the negative emotions.

This tendency to demonise bad emotions and try to numb ourselves against them through addictive, unhealthy behaviours is just that. Unhealthy and harmful in both the short- and long-term. Unhealthy coping patterns can harm both your physical wellbeing and mental and emotional wellbeing in one swoop.

Years of scientific research have given us undeniable proof of these facts. Evidence suggests that experiencing most emotions is beneficial to your mental and emotional wellbeing. Avoidance of these emotions, on the other hand, is detrimental to your health.

Emotions are a part of life. Learning to manage them and not avoid them is the only way to protect your mental and emotional wellbeing and enjoy a better quality of life.

Can you protect your mental and emotional wellbeing by eliminating worry?

The short answer is no, you can never completely eliminate worry. Worry, much like all other emotions (negative or otherwise) is a part of our experience as human beings.

Although worry can’t be eliminated, it can be managed. Managing worry includes regulating the way you react to worrisome situations. It means ensuring that worry doesn’t run your life.

Your worry is a product of your mind. It exists only in your mind and not externally. This means that by controlling your mind, you can, essentially, control your worry.

The best way to control your mind is through mindfulness.

Mindfulness techniques help you master your emotions and develop a better relationship with yourself and with others.

Meditation and mental and emotional wellbeing:

Meditation and mindfulness go hand in hand. When we talk about mindfulness, the best technique to ensure a sustainable and successful practice is meditation.

Meditation imbues you with the focus you need to build your mental fitness and create a foundation for better mental and emotional wellbeing.

Meditation can help you keep your worries at bay by teaching you to focus on the present moment instead of looking to the future with apprehension.

If you find that your worries tend to plague you more at night, then mindfulness can help you tackle that. The secret to fewer worries and better sleep is guided meditation for sleep. Taking a few minutes before bed every day to focus your mind, eliminate distractions, and unwind will transform your mental and emotional wellbeing in no time.

How can Awakened Mind help you boost your mental and emotional wellbeing?

Awakened Mind is the ultimate resource for mindfulness.

Our comprehensive platform includes a Learning Center, a library of targeted guided meditation tracks, and pioneering Neurosync™ technology.

Building a mindfulness practice takes effort and time that cannot be rushed. Awakened Mind can help you build a personal practice that works for you and your lifestyle.

Create a better system of managing your stress and worry with mindfulness today. Leverage our mindfulness tools for yourself, your workplace, and your teams and enjoy greater mental and emotional wellbeing!