Mark Gerard's Therapeutic Massage

I am usually one who affirms and validates people’s emotions. But there is one emotion that I simply don’t understand. I honestly don’t see that it has a purpose in our lives. I consider it so useless, that I can’t believe it actually came to be. I’m talking about worry.

For me, worry boils down to one simple definition: It is the fear of what might or could happen. But, merely worrying about something – the economy, your family, the weather – will not change its outcome. The world will unfold just as it is meant to, whether you worry about it or not.

It might sound like I’m a fatalist. And maybe I am, but my fatalism has a twist. Let me explain a bit more.

I recognize that worry is a harmful and negative emotion. Here’s an example: imagine a woman who endlessly worries about her kids, her finances, and her health. Her worrying keeps her awake at night and, in a self-fulfilling spiral, affects her relationships with her kids, her ability to manage her finances, and her attention to her health.

If she could transform her worry into positive action by talking to her kids, taking control of her money, and taking better care of herself, then she could improve her situation with a more affirming energy. Only the universe knows whether she is actually meant to create positive results out of her worry.

Consider Gandhi’s words, quoted at the opening of this month’s newsletter. Worrying “wastes the body.” It is a useless energy that, at its most extreme, literally eats away at our bodies, creating ulcers that can send us into the hospital. To realize how silly this is, go back to the quiz. Why would anyone allow something they cannot control to have that much power over their well-being? If something is giving you an ulcer, it’s time to turn your worry into positivity … take some self-affirming steps to better your situation!

And as you do, Gandhi would suggest you let God do all the worrying for you. Obsessing about that which you cannot control is not your burden to bear, after all. And you’d be foolish to believe it is.

So stop worrying. And stay positive!