Making a big deal out of nothing or a mountain out of a molehill, is a scenario I’m sure we’re all familiar with.
By treating a problem as greater than it is, or exaggerating the importance of something so trivial means we will always make life unnecessarily overly complicated. Nothing has to be bigger than it is. The problem with the build-up of issues that aren’t a big deal, is that when we do have an issue to deal with that seems overwhelming, then this will be even more difficult to deal with. We must always try to put our issues into perspective.
Not only is exaggerating problems time consuming, exaggeration can also be debilitating too. It may also impact on other people and in other areas of your life. Building something up may also run in families. I have seen that happen although, I’m not sure whether there is a genetic element to it, but in all likelihood, people who over exaggerate will come from families who also over exaggerate.
It’s often down to our perceptions and how we handle issues, things or people. We can choose to see our problems the way they are, or we can choose to make them bigger. The choice is ours. If we see all issues together as problems, those problems may always be exaggerated; whereas if we deal with issues individually before tackling the next one, we’re less likely to blow them up out of all proportion.
Handling single issues separately, helps us focus on the one issue. Once that is sorted we can go on to another issue. The issues themselves usually aren’t difficult, it’s the way we perceive those issues that prove difficult.
If we over exaggerate a problem, we’re also more likely to see problems elsewhere and with others. We’re also generally speaking, less happy with life.
Oh, wow does this apply to my daughter? Every little thing is a big deal to her and she blows things up all the time. She gets so out of sorts over the least little thing and won't take advice from others. Of course she is Bipolar and I think that has a lot to do with how she perceives things.
For instance she and her boy friend were going somewhere once and her tummy was hurting really bad. She acted like she was going to die if he didn't get her somewhere fast. So he got a speeding ticket and she was okay. A bad case of upset stomach. Blowing things up can cause a lot of problems for the person doing it and others.
We should analyse the issue and figure out if it is as big a problem as we are making it out to be, then act on that. We also need to stay calm. It doesn't do anyone good if we're overly freaking out. It won't change the situation just make everyone more anxious.
Take a deep breath, think about what the problem is and then act on it calmly.
Thanks Lisa. I believe Bipolar is different. With Bipolar you don't have the ability to rationale problems, so for your daughter blowing things, making things bigger than they are makes complete sense.
I agree with your last paragraph Lisa. Sound advice. I think we should all take a deep breath, think about what the problem is and then act calmly on it.
I know I shouldn't, but Lisa's post made me laugh!
I think we all know people to whom this post applies. I am reminded of a saying that we shouldn't sweat the small stuff and it's all small stuff! We could all do well to stand back and look objectively at situations if at all possible, before they get exaggerated and then we might just make a better decision.
I also agree that if we make bigger issues out of everything, then it may be much harder for us to cope with a real big issue when it comes along too.
Yes I think we do. I certainly have people in my life who behave in this way, but you're right the bigger problem is being able to cope with bigger issues when they come along.
I think most of us at some point in our lives have exaggerated problems because anxiety amplifies our thought process; we begin to imagine the worst scenarios. I am certainly guilty of that.
I think it's safe to say that we actually create most of our problems because we think things into existence.
Thanks Tim. I couldn't agree with you more. I think you're right. We've probably done all of this too!
We should try to stand back and weigh up the issue or problem before we let it get to that stage. That part's not so easy to do.
Wow, how mature and adult. Could you run for president pretty please? We need some adults after we got hit with 45th USA.
Thanks for the compliment Sony! And for your response. Yes, not long to go now. Luck is on your side.