Worry Is An Unhelpful Answer To Uncertainty
Worry can be a big challenge. It’s completely normal as a caregiver, however it doesn’t have to come with the territory. First let’s make a distinction between worry and planning. You have to prepare and plan for events and possible events. Planning is very good. Dementia caregiving means living with uncertainty. Uncertainty can make you feel uneasy and out of control. Our impatience to remedy this unease is fertile ground for worry to grow. Worry gives us an illusion of control, but worry is an unhelpful answer to uncertainty.
How Worry Hinders Living in the Present
Worry is happening when we focus on ourselves and the unknown. Worry is very caught up with how we will be in the face of what we are worrying about. Here are some paths out of the worry forrest. Focus on the present moment instead of dwelling on unknowns. What is present now? Are the problems that you are fretting over present? Probably not. What is the person you are taking care of feeling right now? Other than worrying what are you feeling right now, What is needed here in the present? This is what is being talked about when people recommend mindfulness. Being aware or mindful of what is right in front of you right now can bring you out of worry. We can be so busy regretting the past and worrying about the future we forget that the present is the only time anything actually happens.
Compassion Lightens the Journey
Worry gets in the way of seeing the present moment as it is. The more we can accept what we cannot change and concentrate our energy on kindness, the better for all involved. Worrying won’t rewrite the future however, compassion will make the journey lighter. Compassion (like everything) only happens in the present.