Post #5: The what-if thinking in anxiety.

As human, we naturally seek for answers about our issues so we can correct them. Once corrected, the issues will either become better or go away. We return to normal life, until another issue arises.

But when it comes to anxiety, there’s no answer. Well, there is, just not the one we’re satisfied with. And this is when what-if thinking is born.

Your heart pounds like a drum and your cardiologist insists that it’s a healthy heart. Your throat tightens up like there is something growing in there, but your doctor ensures you it’s perfectly clear and normal. You feel unstable, dizzy and off balance all the time, but your bloodwork came back perfect, so your doctors tell you just to relax.

You can’t eat; every time you eat, you feel nauseous. Your heart palpitation gets worse after eating. You have stomach pain, pain under your ribs, around your back. You feel weak, cold and hot. But your gastrointestinal specialist doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with you. You feel like there’s something in your head that causes your headache, or maybe your brain is messed up that’s why you can’t focus or think straight sometime. But your neurologist doesn’t think so. I can go on forever with all the symptoms that you can’t find answer for.

So, what it is? What causes you to feel this way? Every medical professional you can find has already given up on you. So, WHAT-IF it’s something even the doctors don’t know. What if you have a disease that science hasn’t discovered yet, it happens all the time right? The answer is Anxiety. But at this stage, you refuse to believe it.

The what if thinking starts to grow beyond your body. It spreads into your daily life. What if people see me having a panic attack at the restaurant? I guess I just won’t eat out anymore. What if I faint in the store? I’ll just order stuff online. What if my co-workers argue with me and cause me to have a panic attack? I’ll just work from home. What if I have to answer a question in class while my heart palpitation is at its peak? I’ll just take online classes. What if people in church see me shaking? I’ll just pray at home.

What if, what if and what if. Your world becomes smaller and smaller until its horizon becomes your front door. At this point, alone in this fight, your depression sets in. Your what ifs are now about your life as a whole. What if I die? What if I leave my family behind? What if I end up in the mental institution? What if I never get better? The more you ask the deeper you sink into the invisible hole.

The answer is simpler than we believe

Little did we know, anxiety can cause so many, terrifying but harmless, physical and mental symptoms. But there are so little time, effort and resources are being spent on mental health. Kids growing up knowing what a heart attack looks like. They know what cholesterol is. They are taught about safe sex and healthy diet. But no one teaches them about what anxiety can cause. They have no idea what a panic attack is. Depression is perceived as being crazy.

The lack of information and preparation is the main cause for what if thinking when it comes to anxiety. I was there, I lost 10 years of my life to anxiety and many of those years to what if thinking. Now whenever anxiety hits me, I know what to expect so it no longer has any grip on me.

You can never have all the answers for all the what if questions! Life is full of uncertainties. Don’t worry about what’s not there. I’m not saying your symptoms are not there, oh trust me they are, they are very scary too. But what’s not there is the catastrophic scenario your anxiety is tricking you into believing. Just think of your anxiety as a broken bone. Put up with it until it heals. A broken bone is like anxiety, it comes without warning, it hurts, it limits your life. But they both will heal with time, if we let it!

If you practice the A.C.E.R. Method and follow this site, you will be able to strengthen your trust about your recovery. What if thinking will no longer be the barricade between you and your happy life.