### What should I do when I feel overwhelmed by the state of the world?

When the world feels too heavy to bear, I suggest you look to the 'little way.' We often spiral into anxiety because we try to carry the weight of the whole globe on our shoulders, which is a form of pride. I found peace by focusing on the immediate work at hand—peeling potatoes for the soup line, writing a letter, or welcoming a stranger. Do not worry about the grand outcome of history. Instead, perform a small act of mercy right where you are. By serving the person in front of you, the world becomes small enough to manage, and your heart becomes large enough to hold it.

How can I stop my mind from spinning with constant worry about the future?

I believe that overthinking is often a symptom of our attachment to security and our fear of the unknown. In my own life, I practiced a 'precariousness' that relied entirely on faith. To calm your mind, try to embrace the present moment as the only reality that actually exists. I would often sit in the back of a quiet church or take a moment of silence to remember that I am not in control. When you stop trying to project your will into next year or even next week, you allow a divine peace to settle into the now. Prayer is not just asking for things; it is the practice of breathing in the presence of God.

Is it selfish to focus on my own mental health and peace of mind?

I would say that your peace is not just for you; it is a tool for the revolution of the heart. If you are consumed by inner turmoil, you cannot effectively serve your community or stand against injustice. However, I found that the best way to achieve this mental health was not through looking inward, but by looking outward. We find ourselves by losing ourselves in the service of others. If you are seeking peace just to feel comfortable, it may remain elusive. But if you seek peace so that you may be a more effective instrument of love, you will find it given to you in abundance.

How can I find silence in a world that is always so loud and distracting?

We are indeed living in a time of great noise, both literal and spiritual. I always emphasized the importance of 'the long loneliness,' which is that inherent human need for connection that can only be satisfied by something greater than ourselves. To find silence, you must intentionally carve out a space for it, even if it is just five minutes at dawn. Put away your tools and your papers. We cannot hear the 'still, small voice' if we are constantly feeding our brains with the chatter of the marketplace. Silence is a discipline, much like poverty or prayer; it requires you to actively say no to the world so you can say yes to your soul.

What is the fastest way to get out of my head when I'm anxious?

Go and do something for someone else immediately. When I felt the walls closing in or the weight of our debts at the Catholic Worker becoming too much, I would go to the kitchen or the streets. There is something holy about manual labor and physical acts of kindness that grounds the soaring, anxious mind. Whether it is washing a dish, checking on a neighbor, or simply walking to the post office for a friend, these physical movements break the spell of the intellect. We are creatures of both spirit and flesh; use your hands to quiet your head. Love is the only real remedy for fear.

How do I stop overthinking and calm my anxiety right now? — Dorothy Day's answer

Dorothy Day

1897–1980

I know exactly where you are right now. Your mind feels like a browser with fifty tabs open, and you’re trying to solve every problem at once, including things that haven’t even happened yet. The hardest part of anxiety is that it feels like "productive" work. You think if you just worry enough, you’ll eventually find a version of the future where you’re safe. But you can’t think your way out of a feeling. The first thing I want you to do is stop arguing with your thoughts. When you try to force the noise to stop, you just end up creating more noise. Instead, I want you to drop the anchor. Your mind is in the clouds, so you need to get back into your body. Feel the weight of your feet on the floor. Pay attention to the way your clothes feel against your skin. This isn't some mystical exercise; it’s a way of reminding your nervous system that you are physically safe in this room, in this second, regardless of what your brain is screaming about tomorrow. Most of what you’re worried about is a ghost. It’s a "what if" that has no substance. You are trying to control things that haven't happened, which is a thief of your current energy. I’ve learned that the only way to quiet the mind is to narrow your focus to a very small window of time. Don't look at the next month or even the next week. Just look at the next hour. What is one small, tangible task you can do right now? Wash a dish, send one email, or just take a walk. Action is the natural enemy of overthinking. When you move, the world becomes real again, and the shadows in your head start to shrink. Be patient with yourself. You don’t have to have it all figured out today. You just have to be here. You are doing much better than you think you are.

From the council, together

## How can Dorothy Day’s radical faith help me quiet a racing, anxious mind? In an era of relentless notifications and the crushing weight of systemic crises, it is only natural that you find yourself paralyzed by overthinking and a sense of impending dread. You are likely feeling the friction between the person you want to be and the chaotic world you inhabit, leading to an interior noise that refuses to cease. Dorothy Day understood this tension intimately as she navigated the Great Depression and the threat of nuclear war while building the Catholic Worker Movement. From her perspective, anxiety is often the result of feeling like we must solve the entirety of the world's problems from our own desks or through a screen. Her tradition suggests that the mind spins in circles when it is disconnected from the physical reality of our neighbors and the quiet demands of the present moment. Instead of viewing your anxiety as a personal failing or a puzzle to be solved through more thinking, Day invites you to see it as a call to re-center your spirit through voluntary simplicity and direct action. Calm is found not in a vacuum of self-help, but in the realization that we are part of a larger mystical body. By turning our gaze away from our own shadows and toward the immediate needs of those around us, we find that the heavy burden of the 'self' begins to lift, replaced by the peace that comes from the duties of love. I know exactly where you are right now. Your mind feels like a browser with fifty tabs open, and you’re trying to solve every problem at once, including things that haven’t even happened yet. The hardest part of anxiety is that it feels like "productive" work. You think if you just worry enough, you’ll eventually find a version of the future where you’re safe. But you can’t think your way out of a feeling. The first thing I want you to do is stop arguing with your thoughts. When you try to force the noise to stop, you just end up creating more noise. Instead, I want you to drop the anchor. Your mind is in the clouds, so you need to get back into your body. Feel the weight of your feet on the floor. Pay attention to the way your clothes feel against your skin. This isn't some mystical exercise; it’s a way of reminding your nervous system that you are physically safe in this room, in this second, regardless of what your brain is screaming about tomorrow. Most of what you’re worried about is a ghost. It’s a "what if" that has no substance. You are trying to control things that haven't happened, which is a thief of your current energy. I’ve learned that the only way to quiet the mind is to narrow your focus to a very small window of time. Don't look at the next month or even the next week. Just look at the next hour. What is one small, tangible task you can do right now? Wash a dish, send one email, or just take a walk. Action is the natural enemy of overthinking. When you move, the world becomes real again, and the shadows in your head start to shrink. Be patient with yourself. You don’t have to have it all figured out today. You just have to be here. You are doing much better than you think you are.

Common questions

### What should I do when I feel overwhelmed by the state of the world?: When the world feels too heavy to bear, I suggest you look to the 'little way.' We often spiral into anxiety because we try to carry the weight of the whole globe on our shoulders, which is a form of pride. I found peace by focusing on the immediate work at hand—peeling potatoes for the soup line, writing a letter, or welcoming a stranger. Do not worry about the grand outcome of history. Instead, perform a small act of mercy right where you are. By serving the person in front of you, the world becomes small enough to manage, and your heart becomes large enough to hold it.
How can I stop my mind from spinning with constant worry about the future?: I believe that overthinking is often a symptom of our attachment to security and our fear of the unknown. In my own life, I practiced a 'precariousness' that relied entirely on faith. To calm your mind, try to embrace the present moment as the only reality that actually exists. I would often sit in the back of a quiet church or take a moment of silence to remember that I am not in control. When you stop trying to project your will into next year or even next week, you allow a divine peace to settle into the now. Prayer is not just asking for things; it is the practice of breathing in the presence of God.
Is it selfish to focus on my own mental health and peace of mind?: I would say that your peace is not just for you; it is a tool for the revolution of the heart. If you are consumed by inner turmoil, you cannot effectively serve your community or stand against injustice. However, I found that the best way to achieve this mental health was not through looking inward, but by looking outward. We find ourselves by losing ourselves in the service of others. If you are seeking peace just to feel comfortable, it may remain elusive. But if you seek peace so that you may be a more effective instrument of love, you will find it given to you in abundance.
How can I find silence in a world that is always so loud and distracting?: We are indeed living in a time of great noise, both literal and spiritual. I always emphasized the importance of 'the long loneliness,' which is that inherent human need for connection that can only be satisfied by something greater than ourselves. To find silence, you must intentionally carve out a space for it, even if it is just five minutes at dawn. Put away your tools and your papers. We cannot hear the 'still, small voice' if we are constantly feeding our brains with the chatter of the marketplace. Silence is a discipline, much like poverty or prayer; it requires you to actively say no to the world so you can say yes to your soul.
What is the fastest way to get out of my head when I'm anxious?: Go and do something for someone else immediately. When I felt the walls closing in or the weight of our debts at the Catholic Worker becoming too much, I would go to the kitchen or the streets. There is something holy about manual labor and physical acts of kindness that grounds the soaring, anxious mind. Whether it is washing a dish, checking on a neighbor, or simply walking to the post office for a friend, these physical movements break the spell of the intellect. We are creatures of both spirit and flesh; use your hands to quiet your head. Love is the only real remedy for fear.