HOW CAN WE STOP CATASTROPHIZING THE FUTURE? <3
When we have anxiety, it is really common to get caught up in a vicious spiral of doom.
We feel HORRIBLE in this present moment... and so we predict that we will always feel this horrible for ever more.
Why does this happen?
Well, they have found that our brains are only able to feel ONE EMOTION at any one moment in time.
Therefore, if we feel horrible now... then we will imagine feeling horrible in the future as well.
In other words, we "contaminate" our predictions of the future with the exact emotion we are feeling right now!
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A good analogy is when we stuff ourselves with Thanksgiving Dinner... No matter how hard we try, we can't actually imagine feeling hungry in the future.
All we can do is LOGICALLY KNOW that we WILL feel hungry in the future... but we can't actually "feel" it. <3
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So, whenever we feel bad... it is important that we apply this SAME LOGIC to the situation... and tell ourselves...
- "This is only how I am feeling RIGHT NOW."
- "This says NOTHING about my emotions in the future at all." :)
This brings us BACK to the current moment and helps us focus on what we can actually do to start feeling better today. <3
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Let me know if you'd like to find out more about how I can help you overcome your anxiety as quickly and easily as possible. :)
I hope you found this helpful.
I hope you have a wonderful day.
Marni Penner
A Kanadai Coach :)