You’ll probably get fired. And that weird mole is almost definitely cancer. Sound familiar?
“Catastrophic thinking is when a person imagines the worst possible outcome to a situation,” says clinical psychologist Linda Blair.
“It’s also sometimes known as magnifying, because it tends to be entirely out of proportion to reality.
"Catastrophisers are usually fairly anxious people, and this is their way of feeling in control. It’s a protective mechanism – by thinking through the worst possible scenario, you then feel reassured when it turns out not to be the case.
“People may learn the habit because they’ve had a bad experience happen to them that they didn’t see coming. To protect themselves in the future, they start imagining the worst possible scenarios in every situation, because they don’t want to be caught off guard again.
"This type of thinking may even have an evolutionary basis – our ancestors had to develop rapid and intense reactions to negative stimuli because such events were a matter of life and death.”
But is preparing for the worst such an awful idea? “Considering all possibilities is not a bad strategy if you examine them logically,” says Linda.
“But catastrophisers tend to give too much weight to the negative thoughts, so in the end it really isn’t very protective. It causes greater anxiety, because the emotional side of your brain – the amygdala – is thinking that this is really happening, and it’s terrible. It’s a huge waste of energy and very stressful preparing for circumstances that may not occur, and it means we don’t have a balanced view of a situation so can’t respond appropriately.”
Research has shown that “awfulising” situations can lead to lower productivity and creativity, plus stress and anxiety in the workplace.
So if your “what-ifs” are spiralling out of control, here’s how to turn full-blown disaster mode into “maybe not that bad, actually”.
Schedule in worry time
“Rather than let anxious thoughts gnaw away at you all day – or more likely all night – establish a regular 20-minute slot where you allow yourself to assess all the concerns you have in concrete terms and think through any evidence you have to back these up,” says Linda.
“The time for this is not 4am when you wake up anxious, as everything is magnified when you’re tired. It should be a time of day when you feel relaxed and alert.
"Time-boxing your anxieties in this way makes them seem more manageable and stops them affecting the rest of your life.
"Plus, most of my clients quickly realise they don’t need all that allocated time because they don’t have enough real worries to fill it, which itself is a positive reinforcement.”
Label the thoughts
“It can be helpful to remember that your thoughts might feel real but they’re not true,” says Andro Donovan, life coach and author of Motivate Yourself.
“If you can replace the worst-case thought with a best-case one, you can retrain your brain. For example: ‘My husband didn’t pick up the phone – he’s been in an accident,’ is replaced by: ‘My husband didn’t pick up the phone – he didn’t hear it.’ Although at first it takes conscious effort, over time and the more you practice, these new thought paths will come to you more easily.”
Take off the binoculars
“Catastrophic thinking isn’t about adversity or bad events making you upset – it’s getting worked up over the potential consequences of that event,” says psychologist Andrea Bonior.
“It’s an example of what Buddha called the second arrow. The first arrow is the unpleasant experience which is a part of everyday life, from the mundane, like your computer crashing, to the more profound waking with a flare-up of pain.
"Instead of simply acknowledging the presence of the first arrow and trying to make things better – rebooting the computer, making a GP appointment – we engage in a stream of stressful thoughts and emotions: ‘Nothing ever works for me,’ or: ‘This pain will never go away,’ which creates a second arrow. But instead of getting out the doom binoculars and projecting into the future, stay in the present.
"Remind yourself that everyone’s computer crashes – it’s no big deal. Or just because you’re in pain this morning it doesn’t mean you’ll be in pain every morning. Everything changes, including pain levels and frustrations.”
Interval training
“Catastrophisers feel compelled to seek external reassurance to calm themselves down, whether that’s canvassing opinions from friends or Googling symptoms,” says Linda.
“Once they feel reassured, they feel better, and this behaviour is rewarded, but it only offers temporary relief. There is always another source to check or another opinion to be had, and so you feel anxious again very quickly.
"The only way to break this cycle is to give yourself some cooling-off time before you act. Even a two-minute grace period is enough at first.
"Gradually you will find you can wait longer, and when you reach the point where you can wait more than 30 minutes without seeking reassurance from others, most find they no longer need it.”
Channel your fears
“Being an anxious person isn’t a bad thing,” says Andro.
“They tend to be very intelligent, highly successful and have lots of energy. Accepting yourself and redirecting your nervous energy into new and positive challenges is much more productive and fun than sitting at home ruminating about things that might never happen.
"Regular exercise, creative projects or learning a new skill are all good ways of channelling this.”
BTW
- 3million people lose out on shut-eye every single night as a result of doubts and concerns
- 47% of people feel most anxious about their health, followed by their family’s health and finances
Call out your inner catastrophiser
“Spend a week writing down all the catastrophising thoughts you notice, whether it’s: ‘I’ll never meet anyone,’ or: ‘I can’t find my keys – I’m going senile,’” says Andrea.
“Then personify this inner voice by giving him or her a name, and visualise what he or she looks and sounds like. Maybe even draw a picture of them, with the thoughts as speech bubbles.
"By doing this you externalise the thoughts – they’re not coming from you, that’s Catastrophe Cathy talking.
"It becomes much easier to argue back with those thoughts and put them in perspective when you create this distance.”
Get some hard facts
“Instead of being sucked into the fantasy world of worst-case scenarios, pull back and focus on the practical choices you do have, which could make this situation better,” says Linda.
“For example, rather than thinking: ‘Am I about to get fired?’ ask your boss for feedback. Instead of picturing being diagnosed with a terminal illness, make a doctor’s appointment.
"And when you think your plane is going to crash, look up actual plane crash statistics. Knowledge is empowering and helps you stay logical.”
- Sources: Social Cognitive And Affective Neuroscience Journal, Swinton Group
- Visit: Lindablair.co.uk, Proofcoaching.com, Drandreabonior.com.
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