Would you do more with your life if you found out that you had a threatening disease?

[the black sun]

There is something i have always wanted to experience. I have always wanted to have the mind set where i could literally not be afraid to do most of the risky things that i think about.
It may sound bad to say this and please don't take this seriously as it is just hypothetical and i apologize in advance to anyone who has actually had cancer.
what i think sometimes is this...

"If i had cancer, and didn't have long to live. Would i worry less about the things that i want to do?"

OK, cancer is a bit of a bad example as it can be sensitive but it is different from saying "What if the world was going to end in a week and we all knew? would i do more things without worry?". The reason why i haven't made this example is because it is to the majority of people and the world would be a different place as everyone would be manipulated by this.

I'de be curious to know some peoples opinions and ideas on this matter. Why in my eyes would it have to take me to have cancer to give me permission to do the things i want to do? Are there any ways that can allow us "worriers" to think differently? To change what we worry about and how?. Also, has anybody gone through any transformation through self improvement or a life experience that changed your mind set?

It has been something that i have contemplated for a few years now but never really talked to anyone about it.

 

[Abject]

No.

 

[malakaix]

In my experience the only guaranteed method to overcome the 'over-thinking/worry' is to literally take a leap of faith; and jump right in. That way you don't give yourself time to think up a hundred scenario's to why you should or shouldn't go through with it, i mean it's good to plan ahead sometimes but if you know your prone to over-thinking situations the best option is usually to be impulsive. You just let go of everything, stop trying to control it and let it happen..

Skydiving is probably the best example of my own experience with this, from the moment you get into the plane the fear begins to build.. you know the only way out is by jumping but because your in a position where you can think about it you still hold onto the comfort that you might beable back out or change your mind. You havn't committed 'just' yet.. so you hold onto that with all you have. Then as your legs are hanging over the edge the fear hits a climax.. and quite literally the moment you jump, its like switch in your mind flicks over.. and all that thought prior to this moment means nothing; your pulled into the moment with shear ferocity and all you can do is flow with it..

I think it's one of the few times in my life where i was "purely" in the moment.. I jumped knowing if something went wrong i would die, i confronted the issue of my mortality and let it go..

Prior to this i also made the decision to travel overseas on my own for almost a year.. another scenario that i delayed for months out of fear of the unknown before i decided 'fuck it' and just made an impulsive decision to book plane tickets and just wing it once i arrived, which ended up been the best decision of my life. This set in motion a chain reaction in my attitude towards life; you will die one day.. once you fully grasp just how temporary your existence is, your more open to living.

 

[Ferox]

^^ Well said.

I've been on both sides of the fence. Living life in the moment and impulsively is far healthier than always worrying. That mindset constantly eats at you and can become extremely debilitating if not addressed.

 

[the black sun]

yeah definitely well said!!
i have been wanting to do sky diving for this sort of mind set and it is a better example.
interesting how an impulse can be set off for a better life. i mean, as humans we are prone to think as that is what our brain does. i get the feeling that if you allow the brain to take hold it seems to create a problem out of something if you let it ride. the brain has to solve problems and to solve a problem is should somehow create one.
acting on impulse should solve this habit that we get ourselves into and also create new opportunities for ourselves.
i'm not saying we should stop thinking all together but somehow if you create a small problem the brain will try it's best to solve something that isn't a problem at all.
that is why in impulse today i asked a girl i have a crush on to meet me in town tomorrow afternoon. i said i have a surprise for her and to meet me in town between 2-3 o'clock.
i can't wait. i don't even care what the outcome is going to be (obviously i would prefer the nice one ) but i have made a step towards taking control of something straight away instead of actually thinking about it and allowing those mixed emotions that are collected over time take hold.
confidence comes from confident action.

 

[L2R]

if i were terminally ill, i'd do less and simply spend more time with my wife and infant boy.

i'm doing a lot with my life as it is, can't fit in any more.