Perceptions matter: Positive Worries

Let’s start something about perceptions once more. For this, I would like to begin with the paradoxical ones — positive worries & negative hopes.

Hope, at times, could be negative. Every one of us would have experienced or observed it in our life at least once. It is absurd to wish for things that cannot possibly happen. False hope is when it can keep you hanging on for so long before you comprehend that nothing positive will happen. At that point, frustration catches you. Now, doesn’t hope become a negative emotion, or at least trigger one? Coming to positive worries, how can worries be positive?

Most definitions describe worry, fear, and apprehension to be truly horrible feelings. Even if anxiety and worry might seem uncomfortable or unpleasant, they are not in any way a threat. They undeniably provide a crucial function. Without these feelings, it would be quite difficult to make ends meet in life. Imagine, if no one fears the law nor worries about it, we would be living in a world of crimes. We might be living in one, actually. But the world today is not so cruel as the one I’d told you to imagine. All the physical sensations that go along with fear and anxiety are fundamentally made to help us react to the danger that fear and anxiety warn us about. There has long been an alert system like this. Without it, it is likely that the human race would not have survived. It has been used successfully for a very long period, therefore it is highly developed and operates quickly and efficiently. In many respects, it is an instinctual reaction. This response is not anything we need to consider. We don’t have to set it off on purpose. If we notice or sense a threat, this reaction can be automatically triggered.

Imagine crossing a road with headphones on. If you don’t fear a roadster hitting you, you don’t look both ways before crossing. If you don’t fear death, you probably won’t wear a helmet. As another illustration, a weak swimmer can be afraid of deep water. In this situation, the dread is advantageous since it warns the person to be cautious.

So what am I trying to imply? To change your perception of your fears. Consider looking at it the next moment you experience a surge of anxiety or stress. Assess whether your concern is a true or imagined threat. Decide whether your anxiety is attempting to inform you how something is important to you or that it counts, and if so, prefer to move forward while carrying your anxiety along you.