Chronic Over-Reactor

Tell me that I am not alone in what I am about to tell you.
Tell me that I am not the only person who seems to be this way.

My name is Anna Rowland and I am a Chronic Over-Reactor.
There. I said it. Shew.

One of my dear friends, Dale, once told me that I created a feeling of impending doom once in a not-so-big situation that I seemed to think was insurmountable. He hit the nail on the head when he told me that about 8 years ago. However, I was too young and immature to even listen to what he was saying.

What is a chronic Over-Reactor?
A Chronic Over-Reactor is someone who consistently overreacts to situations in unnecessary ways.

Example # 1: Having a few slow days at work and you start eating out of date food in your pantry because you have decided this slow time means you are going to lose your job and be homeless in no time.

Example # 2: You cant work out for a couple of days because of the flu and you are convinced every body part you have is broken and can not function and you will soon be gaining 20 pounds.

Example  # 3: You cat has a small mole on his neck so you start making arrangements for his funeral because he is obviously going to die. Duh.

All of these are absurd and obviously not true. In fact, once my brain has quieted down and I have come to my rational senses, I realize that I have acted crazy.

Are you one of these people? Do you over react to nonsense? Well, just in case you are, here are a few tips to help us fellow over-reactors.

  * Avoid "extremes"- try not to get too hungry, too sleepy, too full, etc. People tend to over react even more when they are hungry, tired, have eaten too much, have drank too much, etc.

  *Put a positive spin on it. Instead of being driven by the turmoil, be driven by the solution.

  *When you are in a situation and you want to react, take a minute to breath, pray or meditate first.

  * Don't let your emotions from one situation carry over into another situation and cause a false over reaction. It's easy to come home after a lousy day at work and come home only to let that negativity spill into your home life as well. Try to identify and deal with your emotions from situation to situation.

Not only does overeating about a situation make others feel lousy, but it negatively affects us as well. When it becomes a pattern we can even get ourselves into a downward spiral of negative emotion by feeling bad about our actions and feeling helpless to control it.

Moral of the story: Sometimes moles are moles and not cancer. Sometimes slow days are opportunities to relax and not freak out. Sometimes its okay to miss the gym for a while.

Just relax and enjoy the ride.