I’m laid up right now and I’m an anxious mess. I’m worried about finances and now my car. My mom said the engine sounded funny when she brought it over to her place, where I’m staying.
I’m getting surgery to fix my ankle tomorrow and I’ll hopefully be wfh a week after that. But I will have missed an entire pay period. My big bills are coming up next week, and idk if I’ll have enough to pay them. I also can’t afford a new car, and I’m afraid I’ll need a new one soon.
I’m so overwhelmed. I’ve been close to tears for almost an hour. I’m sure the excruciating pain of my severely broken bones isn’t helping. I’ve been trying to distract myself with TV, games, and crafts, but the anxiety is still persistently at the back of my mind.
I feel you. I’ve had struggled with worrying a lot, too. Biggest insight for me was that worries are first of all just fantasies about the future. Start asking yourself more often: “what if everything goes well?” Instead of “what if everything goes wrong?”. Realize, in the realm of fantasies those two questions are equals. Your mom said that she thinks the engine sounded funny. And that’s it for all we know. Maybe she even just misheard. Also, start tackling real problems that may arise step by step. Stringing along worries before they have even arrived is of course paralyzing because fantasies are endless. You often will realize that all those “follow up” problems you fantasized about will never arise because you are very well capable of solving the real problems right away. Friends and family will love to help you if you ask.
Distractions. Keep your laptop handy. Not a gamer? Now’s a fantastic time to start. :-)
My laptop is at my house right now. As is my PS5 and my Switch. My parents said they can bring all of that over at some point, but they’ve been very busy prepping their house for after my surgery. I figured I’d give them the list of things I’d like from my house once they’re not as busy. I’ve been playing Stardew Valley on my phone and it occupied me for like 4 days, but I am kinda burnt out now and need a break lol.
When I can’t stop worrying, especially at night in bed, I like to put on an audiobook. It keeps my mind distracted without being exhausting in another way. Maybe that’s something you could try? I’m sure there’s some service where you can get a trial month or trial audiobook if money is a concern right now.
ETA: And your phone should probably be sufficient for that.
There’s a YouTuber I like that does vids that are basically podcasts. I am incredibly behind on his content… I could get caught up on that.
