Just for Today, I Will Not Worry

The 2nd Reiki Principle—and the mindset shift that changed everything for
me.

I grew up in a home where worry was normal. Not occasional concern—worry as a lifestyle. My mother was a worry wart (said lovingly), and because children learn what they live, I followed suit. I thought worry meant you were responsible. Vigilant. Prepared. Like if you worried hard enough, you could prevent bad things from happening.

But worry doesn’t prevent pain.  

It just pre-pays it.

And for a long time, I didn’t realize I was living inside a nervous-system pattern, not a personality trait.

The moment it clicked for me

At some point in my healing journey, I started seeing something clearly:

My thoughts were building the pathways that were driving my reality.

If I kept choosing worry—over and over—then my body stayed in that state. My decisions came from that state. My relationships felt that state. My sleep reflected that state. And I realized something that was both confronting and empowering:

If I wanted to remain in worry, I could.
But I didn’t.

I wanted to release it. Not because I stopped caring—but because I wanted to live with more peace, trust, and steadiness.

What the Reiki principle actually asks

“Just for today, I will not worry” isn’t a command to “be positive” or pretend life is perfect.

It’s an invitation to come back to this day—this hour—this breath.

Worry lives in the future.
Peace lives in the present.

This principle isn’t saying, “Nothing will ever go wrong.”
It’s saying, “I don’t have to suffer twice.”

A grounded way to practice “no worry” (without bypassing real life)

Here’s what I teach (and use) when worry shows up:

1) Name it—gently.
“Worry is here.” (No shame, no fight.)

2) Bring it back to today.
Ask: What is actually required of me in the next 24 hours?
Not next month. Not ten hypothetical scenarios.

3) Choose a calming anchor.

• Hand to heart + slower exhale

• A short meditation, prayer or mantra

• A grounding practice (feet on the floor, 5-4-3-2-1)

• A Reiki self-treatment or a few minutes of stillness

4) Convert worry into one clear action.
Worry is often unprocessed “need for control.”
So ask: What’s one supportive step I can take today?
Then stop. That’s enough.

“Worry doesn’t mean you care more.”

This is a big one—especially for those of us who learned worry as love.

Caring is wise.
Planning is helpful.
Protecting is human.

But worry is different. It’s repetitive mental spinning that keeps the body on alert—often long after the moment has passed.

You can care deeply and choose calm.

Journal prompts for releasing worry

If you want to work with this principle this week, try these:

1. What am I worried will happen—and what am I afraid it will mean about me?

2. If I trusted life 5% more today, what would I do differently?

3. What’s the one thing I can control today—and what can I release?

4. What “worry rule” did I learn growing up? Is it still true?

5. What does peace feel like in my body—and how can I return to it?

A simple intention for the week

Say this out loud (or write it somewhere you’ll see it):

“Just for today, I release the need to predict everything.
I choose presence. I choose peace. I choose the next right step.”

If you’re someone who has lived in worry for a long time, please hear me:
This isn’t about perfection. It’s about practice.

Just for today.

And tomorrow? We do it again.

— Mary-Anne