How to Stop Worrying

Everyone worries to some extent. It could be about something little, like what you think you got on a test, or something big, like getting a major surgery.

Do you worry so much that you worry about worrying too much? In the end, if you just worry about what's going to happen tomorrow, when will you have the time to live today? These simple steps could help you relax and appreciate living.

Steps

1. 1
   Live in the moment. Don't obsess about the future - instead, focus on living in the present. Take out time for yourself, or get into an engrossing hobby or sport that will take your mind off your troubles. Read a good book, watch a movie, or have a conversation with a friend. Whatever you do, it should be about living your life as it is now, and not worrying about what's happened in the past or what might happen in the future.
2. 2
   Tackle your worries head-on. You can anticipate potential problems and plan ahead without worrying. The difference is that worrying consumes your thoughts. Address whatever it is that's keeping you up at night, and you'll stop worrying about it. Need to pay a bill? Call the office or fill out a check now - don't wait. Worried about what might happen to your house in a fire? Make time to pick up some extinguishers and smoke alarms.
   • Once you've carved the time out of your schedule to address the problem, stop thinking about it. If the thought starts creeping into your head, shut it down by telling yourself, "No, I've set aside time to deal with that this evening."
3. 3
   Schedule your worrying, so that it doesn't interfere with your daily life. If a worry enters your head at an inconvenient time, designate another time to address it. If you start thinking about house fires during your child's school play, for example, you might think to yourself "I'll go home and make a plan at 10 p.m. when the kids are in bed. There's no use in thinking about it until then."
   • Use your time well. Instead of wringing your hands and dwelling on your worries, decide what you're going to do about it. Make a mental plan, or write it down and stick it on your bathroom mirror.
4. 4
   Move on. Once you develop a reasonable plan, and commit to following it, there's no need to dwell on the worry anymore. Let it go. The danger in worrying is when a scenario that you dread lingers in your head. Sure, you could always do more, like anticipating every possible outcome and taking every possible step to prevent each unwanted outcome from happening, but you'll spend your life preventing bad things from happening rather than enjoying the good things that have already happened. And you won't even be able to stop all bad things from happening, anyway!
   
   
   • Maybe you need to learn to be comfortable with risk. If you believe you've done enough to decrease the chances of something happening by, say, 85%, accept that as good enough. There are simply no guarantees in life, and nearly everything carries some level of risk.
5. 5
   Don't recycle the past. Many of the worries we have about the future are fears that the past will repeat itself. Whether it was heartbreak, or an injury, or a natural disaster, it haunts us and we want to do everything in our power from preventing it from happening again. 
6. 6
   Stop trying to save the world. If you feel like it's your job or responsibility to stop bad things from happening (perhaps to your family, your business, or at all), you're placing too much pressure on yourself. There is such a thing as a hero complex, and you might have it. The thing is, you're only human, and to set yourself an unattainable standard will only cause pain and disappointment. Take the advice in How to Overcome Martyr Syndrome to heart.

How to Follow Your Intuition

Intuition is "knowing" something without being able to explain how you came to that conclusion rationally.^[1] It's that mysterious "gut feeling" or "instinct" that often turns out to be right, in retrospect. When you've whittled down your optionsand are stuck at a crossroads, getting in touch with your intuition can help. Learning how to separate the wheat from the chaff, so to speak, is difficult but intuition can be developed, especially when following some of these ideas.

Steps

1. 1
   Trust your instincts. It can be difficult to depend on something that you don't understand, and you probably shouldn't base every one of your decisions on intuition. For example, if you're hiring someone, you should look at qualifications first and foremost, or else you might accidentally discriminate. But when you've weighed all the options and there is no obvious, rational choice, intuition's really all you've got. Consider the following:
   
   
   • Intuition is basically how you quickly tap into your subconscious mind, which is where you "archive" all kinds of information that you don't remember on a conscious level.^[2]Sometimes you pick up on things subconsciously without realizing it, such as body language. It'll register as a certain "feeling" that you can't articulate at that moment, but it could very well be valid.^[3]
   • Without intuition, you're no different than a computer. You only make decisions based on facts, and you don't always have all the facts.^[3] So unless you're functioning like a computer, you're already making decisions based on various factors other than logic...why not learn how to use your intuition as well?
   • Even some of the world's greatest scientists, the most logical thinkers of all time, have made their greatest discoveries based on flashes of intuition (think of Newton and the apple that fell on his head, or Archimedes shouting "Eureka!" in his bathtub).
2. 2
   Ask yourself questions and listen to the first answer that pops into your mind. That isn't easy, because several thoughts will flood your mind at once. For instance, let's say you're looking at a menu. In figuring out what you want, pick out the first thing that stands out to you. Ignore the remainder of your thoughts, like "But I didn't even look at the specials...but my friend is on a diet and I'll feel bad eating this in front of her...but my uncle said the mashed potatoes he had here were too mushy...blah, blah, blah." Don't dwell on it. Just pick something. It's scary...what if you make the wrong choice?...but you'll be fine.
3. 3
   

    Walk the labyrinth.
   Meditate. Clearing your mind of repetitive thoughts and worries will make it easier to listen to your intuition. Find a meditative technique you are comfortable using and practice.
4. 4
   Listen to your gut. There's a reason it's called a "gut feeling". Many times, a decision that you "know" is wrong makes you feel discomfort in your stomach area.
5. 5
   Listen to and communicate with your multiple brains. Neuroscience research has shown we have functional and complex brains in both our heart and gut. These brains have memory and intelligence. As the points above indicate, your gut and heart brains know when something isn't right and will tell you through feelings, hunches and messages. You can communicate with these brains through simple language, imagery and touch.
6. 6
   Keep an intuition journal. Every day, use your intuition to make a guess about someone or something. Don't act on it, though. Just write it down. Focus on statements like "I have a feeling that..." or "My intuition tells me that..." If there are any sensations associated with your intuition, such as a vision, or physical discomfort, be sure to record it. Looking back in your journal, see how often you are right. As you learn more about how to recognize your intuition, and you see it leading you in the right direction, your confidence will grow and so will your intuitive power.
7. 7
   Exercise the right side of your brain. Intuition is drawn from the right hemisphere of the brain^[4] which is the same side that controls nonverbal, holistic thought and expression. Here are some other ways to "work out" your intuition:
   
   
   • Be Creative
   • Dance
   • Paint
   • Visualize
   • Brainstorm

How to Relax Like a Cat

Feeling uptight and frazzled? Taking out your anger and frustration on everyone and everything around you? Take a leaf out of the life of a cat and learn to relax more often; if you can relax like a cat, you'll stop finding life such a trial. Here are some methods to teach you how to relax like a cat.

Steps

1. 1
   

    Be compassionate with yourself.
   Be compassionate with yourself. Cats don't beat themselves up over not being beautiful enough, acceptable enough, tidy enough, rich enough, healthy enough, or clever enough. They don't stress about foolish things like bad luck. Cats just get on with loving themselves the way they are.
   
   
2. 2
   

    Quit rushing about.
   Quit rushing about. The only times a cat rushes about is when a) it's fun to do so (like chasing a bumblebee) b) the chase has food at the end of it, or c) when they are chasing each other, during mating season. Apart from these three really good excuses, cats stretch out, relax, lick themselves (OK, maybe you don't need to go that far), and sleep.
3. 3
   

    Meditate.
   Meditate. Cats take time out to contemplate the world around them and to just be. Time to be a copycat.
4. 4
   

    Practice cat yoga.
   Practice cat yoga. Ever wondered why some exercises require you to "stretch like a cat"? The reason is simple - cats really and truly know how tostretch for benefit. A cat stretches to relieve tension and restore suppleness in an instant. A cat stretches the right way; follow her lead.
5. 5
   

    Hide out.
   Hide out. A cat that needs respite doesn't hang around. She goes and finds a place to hang out and get over whatever is ailing her. Apart from serious injuries and death, she'll come back rejuvenated for having kept her distance. You could try this too.
   • Make your own special hiding space at home or in the garden where you can retreat to when the going gets tough. Go there, lick your wounds, and come back ready to pick up where you left off.
6. 6
   

    Purr now and then.
   Purr now and then. All right, we don't purr. But we laugh and we don't do it often enough. Many a cat can be set off with the mere suggestion of a pat, cuddle, or comfy spot. And the contentment that comes with grooming! See the happiness around you, the wonder in everything, and feel happiness. And purr laugh a lot more, at things you've stopped noticing were funny, at things that you have always found funny.
   • Make others around you laugh too.
   • Groom your loved ones to increase their level of contentment - give someone you love a massage, a hair brush or cut, a foot rub, or a tickle.
   • Do the cat purr. In, out, in, out. Deep and methodical like the felines do. You don't have to make the rusty noise, just heave in your chest and breathe out slowly, like you're purring.
7. 7
   

    Be grateful for small things.
   Be grateful for small things. As we're rushing off in the pursuit of perfection and bigger and better things, your cats are reveling in the length of your delicious green grass, plucking the daisies from your garden, chewing the cat toys strewn across your floor, and scratching the daylights out of your favorite couch. They have everything they need, right under their wee noses. And so do you, it's just that sometimes you're standing too high off the ground to notice. Get down and spend time seeing your world from your cat's perspective, and relearn the wonders in your own backyard.
8. 8
   

    Cuddle, hug, and nuzzle.
   Cuddle, hug, and nuzzle. Whether it's because you or someone you love had a hard day, or because you're just keen to help another person relax, a good cuddle, hug, or nuzzle will always come in handy. Every cat knows this, which is why they perform these caring rituals regularly. And you might like to top it off by rubbing yourself on someone's legs... or maybe not.

How to Stop Thinking Too Much

It's a golden rule to think before you speak, but you can run into trouble when you think so much that you fail to act, or think yourself into a state of uncontrollable anxiety. Are you looking for a way to stop thinking too much? Don't overthink it and read on!

Steps

1. 1
   Accept that you're thinking too much. Just like eating, thinking is something we need to do to survive, so it is sometimes hard to judge when you are doing too much of it. However, there are several red flags that you are doing too much thinking for your own good. Here are a few of them:
   
   
   
   
   • Are you consumed by the same thought over and over again? Are you not making progress by thinking about this particular thing? If so, this may be a sign that you should move on.
   • Have you analyzed the same situation from a million angles? If you've found too many ways to look at something before you decide how to act, you may be being counterproductive.
   • Have you enlisted the help of your twenty closest friends in thinking about a particular thing? If so, then it's time to realize that you can only ask for so many opinions about the same idea before you drive yourself insane.
   • Are people constantly telling you to stop overthinking things? Do people tease you for brooding, being a philosopher, or staring out of rainy windows all the time? If so, they may have a point.
2. 2
   Learn to let go of your thoughts. Once you've accepted that you have a thinking problem, it's important to learn to let those niggling thoughts go. This will take practice but will be worth it in the end. Here are some great ways to let go of your thoughts:
   
   
   • Meditate. If you feel like you don't know how to stop thinking, you need to learn what it's like to "let go" of your thoughts, so that it's something you can do deliberately. Imagine that thinking is like breathing; you do it all the time, without even realizing it. But if you need to, you can hold your breath. Meditating will help you learn how to release your thoughts.
   • Exercise. Running or even walking vigorously can help you take your mind off of all of those annoying thoughts and to focus on your body. Participating in something particularly active, like power yoga or beach volleyball, will have you so focused on your body that you won't have time for your thoughts.
   • Say your ideas out loud. Once you've said everything aloud, even if you're talking to yourself, you've begun the process of letting go.
   • Ask for advice. You may have exhausted your own thinking power, but someone else might be able to offer a different perspective that makes the decision clearer. This can help let go of your troubling thoughts.
3. 3
   Organize your ideas. Once you let go of some of your thoughts, you can rein in the remaining ones. Organizing your ideas can help you make decisions, recognize your priorities, and have a better sense of what thoughts to avoid. Here are some great ways to organize your ideas:
   
   
   • Make a practical list of the things that are troubling you. Whether you're writing on paper or a computer, you should first define a problem, write down your options, and then list the pros and cons for each option. Seeing your thoughts in front of you will also help you stop cycling through them in your head. Once you can't think of anything more to write, your mind has done its job, and it's time to stop thinking.
     • If making a list still doesn't help you make a decision, don't be afraid to Follow Your Intuition. If two or more options seem equally appealing, thinking more will not make things clearer. This is when you should listen to something deeper.
   • Keep a diary of the things that are troubling you. Instead of lingering over your most persistent thoughts, jot down all of the things on your mind every day. At the end of one week, go over what you've written and make a note of the things that are troubling you the most. You need to deal with those first.
   • Have a to-do list. Make a list of all the things you have to do on a certain day. Unless "brooding" is on your list of priorities, this will force you to see that you have more important things to do than to sit around pondering the meaning of the universe!
4. 4
   Act. At this point, you've used your mind, you've listened to your gut, and you've gotten a second opinion. Now you must be bold. Odds are, if you think too much, it's because your fears get the best of you, and you don't want to mess up. But there comes a point where you have to "fish or cut bait"! Here are some great ways to act more and think less:^[1]
   
   
   • Be social. Surrounding yourself with people you love will keep you talking more and thinking less.
   • Join a club or try a new activity. This will keep you focused on the task at hand, such as bowling or knitting.
   • Read more. Focusing on the thoughts of other people will not only give you insight, but will keep you from thinking about yourself too much.
     • Reading biographies of inspirational men and women "of action" may inspire you to see that behind every great thought, there is an equally great action.
5. 5
   Live in the Moment. Once you've resolved the thinking process, and taken action, focus your awareness on the here and now. Your mind will be tempted to pore over your decision, making you doubt yourself and worry, but what's done is done. Here are some great ways to live in the moment and to Stop Worrying and Start Living:
   
   
   • Every day, make a list of at least five things you are grateful for. This will make you focus on people and things instead of thoughts.
   • Take in a beautiful view as often as you can. This will make you appreciate the world you live in instead of all of those pesky thoughts.
   • Appreciate beautiful music. Listening to a great song can make you feel in touch with the world outside your own head.

How To Power Nap

Whether you're nodding off during the afternoon slump at the office, working a double or a night shift, or fighting drowsiness while driving, a power-nap can make you more alert and productive^[1]but only if you do it correctly. Scientists have been studying the power-nap -- when to take it, how to take it, what to take before you take it, and so on. Their findings suggest that the following steps will help you get the most power out of a power-nap.

Steps

1. 1
   Find a good place to nap.
   
   
   
   • Napping at work - A survey by the National Sleep Foundation found that about 30% of people are allowed to sleep at work, and some employers even provide a place for employees to nap. If your place of employment isn't nap-friendly, you can take a power-nap in your car.
   • Napping on the road - If you're driving find a rest area to park in. Don't park on the shoulder. Always turn off the car and put on the emergency brake. If it's nighttime, park in a well-lit area with plenty of people around and lock all of your doors.
   • Turn off your mobile phone and any other potential distractions. If background noise is unavoidable and distracting, or if you suffer from tinnitus, putting on headphones with relaxing music may help.
   • If you're sleeping during the day and find that bright light inhibits your ability to sleep, wear sunglasses or use an eye mask to simulate darkness.
2. 2
   Have caffeine right before you nap. This may sound counter intuitive since caffeine is a drug and a stimulant, but it won't kick in immediately (Please see the warnings section at the end of this article). Caffeine has to travel through your gastrointestinal tract, such that it can take up to 45 minutes to be absorbed. Taking a "caffeine nap" in which 200mg of caffeine are consumed right before a 20-minute nap will not only improve your performance, but it'll also lessen how sleepy you feel once you wake up.^[2] Skip the caffeine, if it's late in the afternoon--you'll have a hard time falling asleep later--or if you're trying to quit caffeine.
   
3. 3
   When you're close to finishing your coffee (or your green tea, or your caffeine jello shot, etc.), set an alarm to go off in 15 minutes. This is only true if you are one of those people who can fall asleep immediately. To know how much time it takes for you to fall asleep, take a look at the clock when you are very tired and notice how long it was since you got into bed. Generally, you should set your alarm for twenty-five minutes. If you're one of those people who has a habit of pressing the "snooze" button and going right back to sleep, put your alarm across the room so that you have to get up to turn it off. Immediately after consuming the caffeine, close your eyes and relax.
   
4. 4
   Outside of your office door, which should be closed at this point, post up a sign that says you are power-napping and can be contacted at a certain time. Do a little bit of research and present the cruciality of power-napping if needed.
   
   • Even if you can't sleep, close your eyes and meditate. You might not be used to napping, but if you incorporate short bouts of sleep into a daily routine (taking a nap every day after lunch, for example) you can "train" your body to expect a nap during that time and you'll have an easier time falling asleep.^[3]
   • If you have trouble falling asleep, try one of the commercially available power-nap machines or CDs that play a special soundtrack designed to induce a sleep state.
   • A power-nap captures the benefits of the first two of the five stages in the sleep cycle. These first two stages take place in the first twenty minutes. In addition to making you feel more rested and alert, the electrical signals in your nervous system strengthen the connection between neurons involved in muscle memory, making your brain work faster and more accurately.
5. 5
   Get up as soon as the alarm goes off. Sleeping for any longer than 20 minutes will be counterproductive. Sleeping more than 30 minutes can lead to sleep inertia, making you feel sluggish and more tired than ever. 
   • Follow up with physical activity. You can increase your pulse rate with a few jumping jacks or push-ups, or a little bit of jogging in place.
   • Washing your face and exposing yourself to bright light (e.g. sunlight) can help you feel more awake as well. ^[2]

How to Know How Much Sleep is Needed

Do you feel drowsy? Can't stop yawning? Maybe you're not getting as much sleep as you should. Or perhaps you overslept-- there is such a thing, and it's not good for you, either!^[1] To figure out how much sleep you need, follow these steps.

Steps

1. 1
   Develop good sleep hygiene. If you're getting "bad sleep" (a mixture of lying awake in bed and actual sleep) then you have no way of knowing how much good sleep you are getting. To carry out this test, you're going to need at least decent quality sleep (falling asleep soon after you go to bed, and not waking up a lot through the night). Read How to Fall Asleep and How to Sleep Better. Here are the basics:
   
   
   
   
   • Turn out all the lights. Close the curtains or blinds as tightly as possible. If necessary, wear a sleep mask to ensure total darkness, which is one the most important factors in getting a good night’s rest.
   • Don't eat or exercise in the last few hours before you go to bed.
   • Don't drink much in the hour before you sleep, and use the bathroom right before you go to bed. This reduces the likelihood of waking up to use the toilet.
   • Don't get in the habit of reading, watching TV, listening to music, or doing anything that engages your mind when you're in bed.
   • Learn how to clear your mind. See How to Meditate.
   • Abstain from alcohol, caffeine, cigarettes, and medicines that can affect your sleep. Continue abstaining from the use of these products for the duration of the test. (Consult your doctor before abstaining from prescribed medicines.)
2. 2
   Consider the recommended hours of sleep for your age and health group. Though these may not be a perfect fit for you, they are good to aim for until you’ve tested your own rhythms. The recommended guidelines are as follows:^[2]
   
   
   • Infants: 14 to 15 hours
   • Toddlers: 12 to 14 hours
   • School-age children: 10 to 11 hours
   • Adults: 7 to 9 hours
   • Pregnant women may experience an increased need for sleep.
   • Older adults need the same amount of sleep as their young-adult counterparts but, due to a tendency to wake more frequently at night, should consider napping during the day.
   • Individuals who were previously sleep-deprived will need to sleep extra hours until they recover.
3. 3
   Test your own sleep needs. How you do so will depend on your individual circumstances and schedule. Choose the strategy below that is most convenient for you:
   
   
   • Test 1:
     • Wake up at the same time in the morning, every day of the week. The time you choose doesn't really matter as long as it's not likely you'll get woken up earlier. (For example, if you choose 8am, but you know that on Fridays your roommate makes a lot of noise at 7am and it tends to wake you up, set the time at 7 instead. It's just for the length of this experiment, not for the rest of your life.)
     • Set your alarm clock and force yourself to get out of bed as soon as the alarm clock goes off (read tips in How to Stop Hitting the Snooze Button).
     • Go to bed each night whenever you feel tired. Don't stay up if you feel sleepy. Force yourself to go to bed even if you're not tired. After two weeks, your body will know that it has to get up at that specific time and will begin to consistentlystart feeling tired at the time that will provide you with the necessary number of hours of sleep.
   • Test 2:
     • Choose a time to go to bed that will allow you up to 9 hours (or 10, if you can manage it!) of uninterrupted sleep before you need to wake up. It also needs to be a time when you will easily fall asleep; if you're not tired or sleepy and you end up lying in bed without sleeping, this test won't work.
     • Do not use an alarm clock. If you need to wake up at 9am so you can make it to work, go to bed every night at 11pm (which gives you 10 hours to sleep) to ensure that you wake up naturally by 9am. If you're worried you might sleep more than 10 hours, set an "emergency" alarm at 9:15, or do the other test instead.
     • As the test goes on, you'll notice that you start waking up on your own at the same time every day. Let's say you go to sleep every night at 12am and find yourself waking up feeling rested every morning at 8am. That means you need 8 hours of sleep.
4. 4
   Listen to your body. You may discover you need anywhere between 3 and 12 hours of sleep. If you sleep that much (or little) and you feel fine, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. There's no evidence for the recommended 8 hours of sleep a night.^[3] Some people who need less sleep feel pressured to sleep for longer, because everyone tells them they should be getting more sleep in order to be healthy, and their worrying leads to insomnia!^[3]