Do you feel anxious about events which may or may not happen?

When you feel anxious do you find yourself thinking, "Yes, but... what if"?

This can be about events that may or may not happen in the future. You start this continuous loop of asking yourself a what if question. This leads to the next, then the next, until you are back where you started. This pattern of thinking can be about real or imagined future events.

An example of this can be often seen to loop around so it can begin with a person saying,

"What if I go out with my friends and get worn out and start to worry then I will have to go home, and then what if I go home, and then I will ruin their day out, and then what if I ruin their day out, then I will make my friends sad, and then what if friends are sad, then I will feel terrible, and then what if I feel terrible, then I will get worn out and start to worry, and then...

Do you feel anxious about events which may or may not happen? Self awareness is key to exploring how we make these changes possible. By understanding our patterns of behaviour, we can begin to challenge what is not helpful.