anxiety and procrastination

[Gracestars]

Does anyone else experience these two in relation to one another?

I've noticed that when I'm feeling anxious, overloaded and overwhelmed with stuff that's going on in my life, and/or things I need to get done, I sort of shut down. Usually, I'll write some sort of list of what I need to do that day, but end up spending a whole lot of time on time-wasting activities. I usually end up getting it all done, but not until the final hour, when I force myself up and at it.

It's a really irksome, unsettling feeling. Paralysis.

[Gracestars]

Actually, as a general trend of late, I've noticed my desire to have things in my house in order as much as possible. Clean, tidy, and looking good. I'm also writing in my diary every little thing I need to remember. It's a busy time, and it's easy for me to forget I have something on, and double book.

Clearly, this is about control. It's when the overwhelm kicks in, and it feels like there is too much to stay on top of, that I don't know where to begin, or rather, I take forever to get going.

I don't think I'm too good at being super busy. I need lost of space where things are unplanned.

[dendennz]

I get that. Got it very badly yesterday: very anxious, and couldn't settle into anything productive. Wasted my entire day on the 'net playing STUPID Facebook games.

I know it's a waste, yet I still do it. Just get overwhelmed by the things i need to do.

And I have a freakin' headache today.

I like the fact that you do have periods of time when you get your house in order. Mine hasn't been for years. Don't give that one up.

Cheers,

Jenny.

[ZephyrusX]

Yah, I get this. In fact, I’m using these forums right now as a means of procrastination and avoiding stressful school work.

So far, the routine has been pretty much the same. I end up doing most of my work a few days before it is due (but I still manage to do well on it). I haven’t really came up with an effective solution as of yet. Though I think it is a good idea just to take a day off from work every now and then to ‘procrastinate’ as it allows me to relax. I think it is an issue of blowing things way of proportion and stressing out over what I perceive to be a bigger task than it actually is. Then in response to that high level of stress, I sort of 'crash'. If I can actually do well on assignments when I leave them to the last moment, then obviously the issue isn’t as big as I initially perceive it to be. Yet I continue to stress out and procrastinate…

[scotthegeek]

I have read that people that procrastinate are perfectionist and they worry about being judge so that where the anxiety comes from. but they rationalize the procrastination by saying if I only had more time it could have done it perfectly.

So you see the trap you don't want to be seen as not perfect so you procrastinate so you wont be judge by yourself or others. But than you judge yourself for procrastination so you can't win.

I'm a procrastinator. I'm doing just 15min of house work everyday I don't have to worry about getting it all done I just have to do 15mins a day and I will get done. so far its working its like my house is cleaning it self. I don't have to worry about cleaning my house some day when I can't stand it any more or if someone is going to come and visit.

Scott

[Gracestars]

Thanks, guys. I'm glad I'm not the only one who experiences this.

I'm going to try hitting the exercise pretty hard (tricky to do when you're feeling low on motivation!) and see if that helps. I think I might have some stagnant energy built up. Better out than in!

[Lifeisamazing]

Happens to me too. Who doesn't ever have this issue?

I believe that the solution is to take your most important thing and do a small step at a time. This way it seems simple and won't overwhelm you and you won't lose your focus. Besides, this small thing is going to be done perfectly or at least close to it.

I know that we all want to be able to be really productive but at the end of the day we'll be able to do far less if we pile up billion different things for one day.

[DominicJackson]

I do it to. But I realised that I really didnt want to do some of the things I felt anxious about so I stopped and started doing stuff I am not anxious about.
Sometimes its there for a good reason, our heart maybe not into it or something.

[gerber]

If you're anxious about a certain event and that causes you to procrastinate, you can try a great NLP trick to get rid of this anxiety. I have used it a couple of times, and it really worked for me.

Here it goes:

First write down the intensity of the anxiety you feel right now, on a level of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the highest).
Remind yourself that anxiety is worrying about something that has not yet happened. It's a fabrication of the mind. Take a deep breath in and imagine that you are on a timeline and facing the future in front of you. Float above this timeline and go forward directly above the event and look down upon it. What you do now is the most important step: you float a bit further into the future, say 15 minutes after the event ended. Can you feel the anxiety now? It is gone, because anxiety is worrying about a future event and the event has already passed.

If it didn't work, try it with your eyes closed. In that case it could be easier to follow someone's voice, guiding you through the exercise.
I found the following video by Mark Shepard by searching for NLP and Anxiety on YouTube:
YouTube - Stop Anxiety Fast! Part 6: NLP Technique To Stop Anxiety

One last thing, you could say that anxiety is a good thing, because it can help you to prepare for that event. Anxiety does not help. It is much better to focus on your goals and your actions without this anxiety.

Good luck!

[goldberg]

Originally Posted by Gracestars

Does anyone else experience these two in relation to one another?

I've noticed that when I'm feeling anxious, overloaded and overwhelmed with stuff that's going on in my life, and/or things I need to get done, I sort of shut down. Usually, I'll write some sort of list of what I need to do that day, but end up spending a whole lot of time on time-wasting activities. I usually end up getting it all done, but not until the final hour, when I force myself up and at it.

It's a really irksome, unsettling feeling. Paralysis.

You could try mentally setting yourself time limits, you could even go so far as to get a stopwatch and see the time ticking down, this can act as a powerful motivator.