Within a typical college life, there’s a lot

to worry about.

In addition to classes, many students

take on several extracurricular activities, part

time jobs and internships. In our personal

lives, there’s the drama that revolves around

significant others, friends and roommates.

There are several sources for possible stress

and worry.

I am the ringleader of the worry circus. I

am a pessimist to the ultimate degree. Stress is

a way of life for me.

About a year ago, my attitude toward my

worrying was altered when I read The Secret,

edited by Rhonda Byrne.

There is a lot of controversy about the

book and the message it tries to convey, but

on its simplest level, it changed my life.

The main idea behind the book is that the

direction in which our energy and thoughts

are focused will yield physical results and

solutions in the same focused direction:

Positive thoughts will produce positive things

in our lives.

Positive thinking for those who are

especially pessimistic takes time. It doesn’t

happen overnight. The brain has to be retrained

in the way it processes everything.

The Secret outlines a process in which you

fully imagine yourself achieving your biggest

goals, finding the love of your life or even

becoming a millionaire.

If all your energy is spent thinking and

feeling what this amazing experience will

be like and feel like, there’s really no time or

energy for anything negative.

On a less intensive, everyday plane, when a

person just wants to have a peaceful, happy day,

the book suggests waking up each morning and

spending a few minutes just thinking about

everything you have to be thankful for.

Before reading the book, I woke up and

quickly went over my long, extensive schedule

for the day and would often instantly get

stressed out before crawling out of bed.

Feeling thankful and blessed, as opposed

to stressed out with a racing pulse and a cold

sweat, is a much better way to start the day, in

my opinion.

To maintain a positive outlook throughout

the day, after you’ve missed the bus or realized

you’ve forgotten to peek in the mirror before

leaving the house looking a heinous mess,

requires training your brain to let things go

quickly and easily.

Any motivational speaker I’ve listened to has

advocated the power of personal affirmations.

It’s cheesy and so very Dr. Phil, but it honestly

works.

It can be as simple as, “I can do this,” “It’s

not the end of the world” or “Everything’s

going to be fine.”

My personal favorite, which has worked

time and time again, is, “I can and will choose

the way I feel.”

For me, it’s about taking responsibility

for my stress level and my worry load and

deciding to focus on what makes me happy,

as opposed to letting myself feel as though I’m

on the verge of pulling out all my hair.

Another book I’ve read with a somewhat

similar message to The Secret is Pronoia is the

Antidote for Paranoia, by Rob Brezsny.

A quote from this book that has helped me

feel more at peace with what goes wrong in my

life or the people that upset me is, “We should

feel excited about the problems we confront

and our ability to deal with them.”

Instead of worrying about how badly

something is going to affect me or overanalyzing

a less-than-ideal situation, I’ve started thinking

about how this particular circumstance is

going to make me a more captivating, diverse

and beautifully flawed person.

As human beings, we’re all going to stress

out from time to time. My goal has never been

to completely rid myself of all worry, and I

don’t think I ever could. Life would be boring

if I had nothing to worry about.

Knowing that I have the power to choose

where my energy goes and what feelings result

from the direction of that energy is what has

made all the difference in my life.

[Reach columnist Shauna Nuckles at features@thedaily.washington.edu.]