Life gets messy, complicated, and full of disorder and ambiguity. You may find that difficult situations cannot be worked out immediately and require time, patience, and an ability to wait for the solution to unfold gradually. You may not always be able to resolve things quickly or know in advance how something is going to work out. You can make yourself feel extremely anxious at such times when things don’t work out as planned.

Cultivating patience involves being tolerant of life’s temporary, unsolved predicaments and uncertainties while you wait for a solution or opportunity to emerge. Patience requires trust. You nurture your ability to trust that the natural flow of life has moments that cannot be controlled or easily fixed. Life has an uncanny way of working itself out, with or without you.

1. Give yourself permission to walk away from the situation. Literally, you may want to take a walk or leave the room. Fight the urge to go back in and haggle over the solution. Just remove yourself from the troublesome area.
   
   
2. Once you’ve taken a time-out, check in with yourself. How’s your breathing? Are you hungry, thirsty, or tired? When was the last time you took a break and stretched your body?
   
   
3. Affirmations can help develop an attitude of patience and trust. Try these or make up your own: “Patience starts with me. When I practice patience, I am allowing myself to accept the things in life that are ambiguous, uncertain, and undefined. When I stop micromanaging every step along the way, I am widening my perspective and trusting that problems in life eventually resolve themselves.” Write these affirmations down and post them up at work as daily reminders of your ability to stay calm and be patient.

Over time, as you cultivate patience and trust within yourself, you’ll learn to relax and tolerate life’s unpredictable moments. You’ll learn to let go and wait for the answer or solution to surface in its own time.

Excerpt from Daily Meditations for Calming Your Anxious Mind by Jeffrey Brantley, MD, and Wendy Millstine, NC.