Tuesday, January 23, 2007

ON BEING WORRIED

'I could worry for the olympics and win a medal. Gold.' (This was found in a book I was reading, and I felt that it would make an excellent start to a post!)

Now, worrying is something we all do from time to time, but the degree varies among people. Some just worry for a fleeting second and then throw it all away with distractions and then there are some that become even more worried with all the distractions that are around them. If there's nothing to worry about, these people borrow something to worry about from the future by playing all the worst case scenarios in their head! (paranoia comes to mind)
On a more personal note, I think it runs in the family. All the older relatives obsess (worry) about the younger ones (I unfortunately still belong to the 'younger' set), their imaginations going wild on all the 'bad' things that could happen, from crazy drug addicts waiting to rob you behind bushes in location A, when in fact, you have neither seen bushes large enough to hide even the skinniest drug addict nor have you seen any drug addicts lurking around (skinny, blood shot eyes, looking aloof, etc!) in said location to kidnappers lurking to catch you and your cousins after a 5pm movie in the local cinema!

On the other hand, the following list depicts realtime worries:
1. You try to get some sleep, but instead you lie awake and worry that you're not getting enough of sleep. (Sounds odd, and totally beats the purpose, but it happens!)
2. Worrying that you did not screw back the fuel tank cover after pouring petrol although you're pretty sure you did it.
3. Worrying about the changing weather conditions. Floods, the breaking of a large chunk of ice somewhere in the Arctic, etc.
4. You worry about the sudden influx of teeth in your mouth, and the not so flattering grin and then proceed to worry about finding an amazing dentist and the impending pain of having your wisdom teeth removed to cater to the inequality of size between your mouth and the teeth.
5. You worry about losing your passion for blogging (Although posting of blog posts is at an acceptable frequency, you feel that each post lacks the energy the earlier posts had)
6. You worry about work issues when you're at home and you're supposed to leave work where it belongs.
7. Feel troubled that you've yet to go on your European backpacking adventure and time is running out!
8. You wonder if you'll ever do your post graduate or where you're gonna do it and when, and how...
9. You worry about worrying too much!
Worry!
You should be sorry
Why are ye in such a a hurry?
To ruin the lives of all and sundry!
Worry!
What is your duty?
Do you make visions blurry?
And leave everything else in a slurry!
What do you worry about?

10 comments:

  1. Third time trying to post a comment!!

    Yep. Worrying is like a bad habit: Easy to get into and hard to break.I have a sleep problem too, and so many nights spent worrying about not sleeping... and worrying about how insane I get when I don't have enough sleep. Something my mother told me that helps is that lying still is resting your body, so that even if you don't actually sleep you are getting some rest.... sometimes that helps me to relax and sleep.

    I too am a natural worrywart. It's so funny the amount of things that worrying can prevent you from doing. And then every so often I get surprised at how easy some things are if you just don't worry about them. Other things require assessment that is more akin to worry. it's just hard to tell which is which.

    One of my most insane worries, which is something I have only developed in the last few years, is that I freak out when i feel confined, particularly by people. For example I hate being in a packed cinema when I know that if I wanted to leave I'd have to get in the way of a lot of people. This is insane because its rare that I would have to leave the cinema and even if I did I know I would just have to say 'excuse me' a couple of time, so no big deal, but it still bothers me.

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  2. Oh dear. You do seem like you are worried....too much. Does meditation help? Yoga? exercise in general?

    As for me, I haven't slept for days....really.

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  3. Oh how funny (not funny "ha ha" but funny in a coincidence way) I have those same worries--except with "petrol" and ice chunks breaking off :)

    I sometimes can't sleep with my brain racing and then worry about not getting enough sleep.

    I tend to worry about the kids and whether I've messed up with a particular issue related to them during the day--"Did I make the right call?" and other such issues.

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  4. I worry too much. And I worry that I worry too much. My sweet lady is concerned that I worry too much, and that makes me worry about her concern.

    Uhm....

    Yeah - guess I identify a little bit with your post today.

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  5. aunty: blogger's a monster cause it's slowly disintegrating the communications between old/new/beta people.

    Yah, back to worrying... I wasn't like this before, and therefore that makes me worried too.

    We've got to stop worrying...


    maryam: lets see, meditation is not applicable because I'm always thinking about something or another. Never tried yoga though... might take up this suggestion. Thanks

    scribbit: yeah, I guess some of our worries are similar... But I guess it's particularly true about parent worrying about their kids.

    travis: that's sweet, although it's about worry

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  6. shYou know what, I worry about my folks (read older relatives) worrying me about all kinds of nasty things that would probably happen to me if I so much as step outside the house.

    Apart from that I do worry about the topic of the next blog post, climate change (as in items 3 and 5)
    But ‘rest’ assured, I’m glad I never worry so much as to lose sleep. :-)

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  7. I worry about not making the most of the time I have left. Yes, a typical midlife obsession--I have fewer years left than I have logged at this point. Not to worry. Nice post.

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  8. julia: older relatives (parents) are paranoid... but what I like best is when they retort, "Wait till you have your own children!!!" It never fails to make me laugh...

    gem: We all worry about something or another, don't we? I just wish that time would move a bit slower... it's alarmingly fast!

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  9. #1 and 5 definitely apply for me. I worry way too much.

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  10. Guilty as charged.I worry more than I should about things that matter not.

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