I am a chronic worrier and as I get older the worse I appear to be…

I start to worry from the minute I get up to the minute I shut my eyes I worry about everything, from my family to world events. It takes me hours to fall asleep and it is a blessing when I do.

My doctor put me on anti-depressants for awhile but they didn’t work. I know I am sending my husband insane and my grown-up children are totally intolerant of me. Do you think I would benefit from seeing a psychologist, or am I wasting my time because I have been a worrier my entire life?

Answer

Chronic worrying and anxiety go hand in hand.There are numerous things you can do to help yourself with this problem and I would not be surprised if one of your parents suffered with anxiety and was also a worrier, it is usually a behaviour that is passed down genetically and behaviorally.

You would definitely benefit from seeing a psychologist, but there are some things you can do to help yourself. There is an exercise that I recommend to my clients who are chronic worriers:

1. Choose a time in the day when you have 10 to 15 minutes alone and it has to be the same time every day. Preferably in the morning.
2. Write down in a little note book, everything you can think of that causes you to worry.
3. At that allotted time, I suggest you read and re-read your list and think about what issues you can resolve and what issues you have no control over.
4. During the day if you start to worry about anything on the list, remind yourself that you cannot think about it till the allotted time the next day. If it is a new worry, add it to your list.
5. If you can stick to this exercise, hopefully you will realize how much time you waste over a day worrying over matters you have no control over and never come to fruition.  At the same time you will sort out the issues that you can resolve.

Along with doing this exercise, I recommend you do some physical exercise consistently. Research has found that one of the better remedies for anxiety is exercise.
There are also remedies for insomnia such as medication, yoga, and the one I use in my practice is EEG Neurological Biofeedback www.eegneurolicalbiofeedback.com which is a program that regulates under or overactive brain waves which often prevent people from sleeping…