Car troubles are probably one of the most stressful, anxiety inducing things out there. They’re right up there with all of the things I hate…including lima beans…and bathrooms that have carpeting. I get anxious just thinking about having to take my car to get repaired. My car is what connects me to the outside world! Having a car is essential to my business and my business is essential to being able to pay my bills and live my life. Thinking about what I’d do without it makes me freak the heck out. So weekends like last weekend, where there’s an unknown problem with it and I’m basically considering all of the worst case scenarios (like potentially not being able to go ANYWHERE for long periods of time, having to get a new car, etc) are not my idea of a good time.

I am learning though, in stressful times, to redirect my thoughts. Instead of thinking about how terrible the situation is, and how much it sucks, I think about how much it doesn’t suck. I think about the positive things, always starting with, “If this is my BIGGEST problem right now, my life is pretty great”. If spending $700 dollars on my car is the absolute WORST problem in my life…my life actually looks pretty amazing. I am healthy, happy, and safe. I actually have $700 in my savings account to have the repairs made, and we have another (albeit old and smelly) vehicle we can use to get from place to place if we really needed to go somewhere while the car gets fixed. Oh, and, we have a car. Which is a huge luxury! From there, positive thoughts start to fill my head in almost a domino effect and my anxiety starts to melt away. Everything is okay…in fact, things are pretty great.

Applying this spin on my negative thoughts and learning to be grateful for my “problems”  helps my anxiety more than almost any other remedy I’ve ever tried. Anytime I feel myself getting stressed about something, whether it’s as small as a traffic jam or as large as a big unexpected car repair during off season, right before Christmas, I think about how small my problems really are in comparison to other things happening in the world every day, and I start to feel thankful instead of anxious. It works like a charm! And the best thing about it is, it’s true. Looking at the good parts of life instead of the bad will always make you realize how wonderful it all really is. The next time you’re feeling stressed or anxious, start with this: “If this is the worst problem in my life right now…my life is pretty great”. I guarantee amazing results 🙂