Tag Archives: keep calm and carry on.

Stop Worry In Its Tracks — Seven Ways To Keep Calm And Carry On

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cat pictureBritain is on the verge of a stress epidemic. One in five adults now worries for at least 60 minutes every day, and more than seven million Brits are believed to have a certifiable anxiety disorder. Even low-level worry can negatively impact work, home and quality of life and it’s a situation that costs the UK economy over £6.5billion each year.

But you don’t have to put up with your anxieties a day longer. Here, UK ‘Worry Tzars’ Professor Daniel Freeman and Jason Freeman — authors of new Pearson stress management guide How to Keep Calm and Carry On — provide seven simple but effective anxiety-fighting tips to help win the war against worry.

PUT YOUR FEARS TO THE TEST

Anxiety is the brain’s way of alerting us to potential dangers and equipping us to deal with them. Avoidance of dangers is perfectly reasonable, but not when the fears are unrealistic. Avoiding these fears means that you never put your anxiety to the test. When what you fear doesn’t occur, we assume it is because of the safety measures you’ve taken. You ignore the simplest explanation: the problem wasn’t very likely in the first place. So meet new people or confront your fear of water or dogs etc.

2.      THOUGHTS ARE NOT FACTS

It is important to remember that just because you think something, it doesn’t make it a reality. The brain makes its judgement extremely rapidly, and it’s not always correct. You may think your neighbour doesn’t like you, or worry that you’re less intelligent than your work colleagues, but it is entirely possibly – and usually more likely – that you are mistaken.

3.      CONSIDER ALL THE EVIDENCE

When thinking about your fears and anxieties make sure you give equal weight to each piece of evidence, rather than giving extra credence to those that support your fears. By acknowledging both sides of the argument you will see irrational worries for what they really are, and overcome them.

WRITE DOWN YOUR FEARS

Three or four times a week write down your fears. Do it in a way that a stranger could read and understand them. This stops irrational fear floating around in your mind. It is as if you physically get the worries out of your head and onto paper.

SCHEDULE YOUR WORRY

Some people can’t stop worrying – no matter what. Therefore set aside a period every day of about 15 minutes and dedicate that to worrying. Choose an uncomfortable spot, a hard chair, or a stool – to ensure you are not relaxing. Then, think through your worries. Don’t run over the 15 minutes and train your brain that this is the period for irrational worrying. If you worry about things during the day, try to put them out of your mind until your designated worry period.

 THINK OF A POSITIVE MEMORY

You cannot stop worries occurring, but you CAN develop techniques and coping strategies to stop them controlling your life. One very simple but powerful technique is to think of a positive memory. When you feel anxious, recall a similar situation involving the best outcome rather than the worst.

7.      REMEMBER TO RELAX

Many scientific studies have shown a strong link between exercise and stress reduction, so make some time in your daily routine to relax body and mind. Utilise proven relaxation techniques such as yoga, or light to moderate exercise . . . then Keep Calm and Carry On!

 

How to Keep Calm and Carry On: Inspiring Ways to Worry Less and Live a Happier Life by Daniel & Jason Freeman (Pearson) is out now, priced £10.99, from Amazon and all good book shops.

 

Are The Good Times Really Over For Good?

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For someone in their twenties it is hard to think of a time which has been harder economically than right now. But I do know that this is not true. There have been many booms and busts before, times much harder than this. Rationing, world wars, the great depression.

But what of the future? My generation seems to have gotten the muddy end of the stick. The OECD, a respected British think tank, said that Britain has slipped into a double dip recession and more pupils than ever are getting free school meals, the governments indicator of a child growing up in poverty. Tube drivers might be raking it in, getting paid £500 just to show up for work each day during the Olympics, but the rest of us are struggling.

Are the good times really over?We have become generation rent, unemployment is high, we not only have a harder time getting our dream job, but getting any job at all. I have friends that are moving out of West London where I live because they cannot afford it, struggling to find jobs and even if they have one, struggling to survive the squeeze.

Not getting to the nitty gritty. Tuition fees are up to a staggering amount, 9K a year for an education, transport costs go up above inflation every year; the Oyster caps at £10 per day in London. Then there is the fact that if you get an unpaid internship these days you are one of the lucky ones. It seems everyone is taking everything from the young. I am luckier than most. My education days are behind me and so are my internships: but if the children really are the future, then what of it? Are the good times really over for good? Everything from stamps and food is going up. Petrol is so expensive people cannot even get to work and the government is looking shifty after the cash-for-access scandal. Never mind the fact we don’t have any privacy anymore and they are trying to bring in web-monitoring.

Government debt is at a £988.7 billion. And who is going to have to pay that off? The decent, hard working people of Britain. Oh well. We can always print some more money.

What good will come from this? Lessons maybe. We lived in a society that saw the word ‘credit’ and did not take in the fact that actually means ‘debt’. Above all we will do what the British do: keep calm and carry on. You may want to cross your fingers too.