Nick Wright
You wake up and look at your alarm. You are an hour late for work! Your brain calculates what this could entail for your future. A lot of the predictions induce anxiety – a fear of the future.
- “I am going to get fired!”
- “I wonder how much lecturing there will be this time!”
- “My co-workers are going to gossip about me!”
Our brain attempts to prepare us. It gives us several possible outcomes. Some of us believe our brain is always correct. After you accept a negative future, anxiety gets created.
Anxiety – Where does it come from?
When we fear the unknown, anxiety creeps into our lives. The future can be a scary place. You cannot see it, nor can we predict it with 100% certainty.
Your brain can create millions of futures if you give it enough time. Most of them you will write off as a near-impossible probability. The future could have aliens abducting you while driving to work late. There is always a chance, but it is unrealistic – we tell our minds “No.” The more realistic the future, the more we tend to believe it. Getting fired from work is more plausible to happen. Your brain is pessimistic. Then, if you trust it, you introduce anxiety into your life.
Pessimism believes the worst will happen. You might conclude your brain is an ultimate prediction machine, and being fired must be true. Once you incept this idea into your head, you will start thinking of futures upon futures. You get lost in your head and start thinking worse thoughts. You have let fear and anxiety take control of your life.
In our scenario, the future will resolve itself by days end one way or another. Anxiety will leave you. You could get a warning from the boss, in which case you have nothing more to fear. However, you may be correct and fired. Then, you start the cycle from the beginning again.
Anxiety Cycle
- A problem or mistake has occurred.
- Your brain creates many potential futures.
- You agree with your brain on at least one and focus on it.
- You picture yourself in the future.
- Anxiety in that unknown world sets in.
- You are no longer thinking about how to fix the problem.
- Anxiety passes after the time your future took place. If a new problem occurs, reset the cycle.
Using Fear to Our Advantage
Regaining control of anxiety’s grasp is not a simple task. You first have to accept fear.
Fear is coming whether you want it to or not. After the problem arises, your brain begins calculations for the future. At this moment, you will receive outcomes that feel scary and full of fear. Once you recognize the fear, accept it as a possibly uncertain future. There is no reason to trust it as truth when anything can happen.
If you can reprogram your brain to say “I could be wrong.” that would be your first step towards conquering anxiety. Keep an open mind.
The next step is to believe in yourself. Think back to your past when you tried something new for the first time. How did you manage to do with no experience? You can do anything. You will be able to find the answer and succeed. Do not let fear win and freeze you from making decisions. The next time you attempt a new activity, do not assume you will make mistakes – find the truth by just going out there and trying. Trust that when a negative future comes your way, you will have the power to overcome any obstacle.
If you ever start thinking suicide is an option, you know anxiety has too much power over you. Seek emergency treatment.
Seek a doctor any time you feel you are searching for the future too much. Do not let it demotivate you from your relationships, work, or hobbies.
Remember, anxiety is a very normal feeling. It is only a feeling, and ultimately you have control over your mind.
