Don't Feed the Monkey Mind: How to Stop the Cycle of Anxiety, Fear, and Worry (How to Stop the Cycle of the Anxiety, Fear, and Worry)

by Jennifer Shannon

if taking care of your own needs is a casualty of taking care of others, you’re being over-responsible.

Problems that arise from the over-responsible mind-set include: working harder than others, taking on other people’s problems, poor self-care, burnout, constant worry and rumination about others, giving advice to others to the point of pushing them away, blaming yourself for things that are not your fault, difficulty setting limits, and difficulty with asserting yourself.

Faced with a decision or project that caused him performance anxiety, Eric procrastinated. Distracting himself by responding to e-mails, incoming phone calls, and employee requests was an attempt to avoid the anxiety he would feel if he actually made a decision or started on a project.