Any sign of turbulence means your plane is going down. Your boss sighed at you, so you’re bound to get a call from HR. Your headache is…wayyyy more than a headache. Welcome to catastrophizing 101, folks.
In case you didn’t know, catastrophizing is when your brain jumps to the worst possible outcome in any situation, says psychotherapist Gianna LaLota, LMHC, clinician at NYC Cognitive Therapy. It’s a type of cognitive distortion, or a faulty line of thinking, that can happen to the best of us. Seriously—anyone can catastrophize, but you may be more prone to this if you have an anxiety disorder or depression, says LaLota.
We all have intrusive thoughts sometimes, but catastrophizing takes this a step further by assuming the worst-case scenario will happen and causing you to ruminate over that, says psychotherapist Kristen Jacobsen, LCPC. Plus, catastrophizing is usually rooted in things that are pretty legit. Like, maybe you’re jumping to conclusions because of past experiences where things went wrong, LaLota says. Or, maybe your mind is interpreting anxiety or fear as evidence that you’re in actual danger, she adds. Take turbulence, for example. Feeling scared as your plane bounces can trick your brain into thinking that a crash is inevitable, LaLota explains.
Catastrophizing is also your mind’s way of trying to get ahead of a bad outcome by preparing you for the hard feelings that come with it, like disappointment or even more anxiety, says Jacobsen. For instance, spending the entire week before a trip worrying about the airline losing your luggage and convincing yourself that that’s productive because, hey, it could happen!
Despite what anxiety would have you believe, worrying about the future won’t actually change the outcome, but it will almost definitely ruin the present. Catastrophic thinking can, unfortunately, be all-consuming like that, LaLota says.
Worst-case-scenario thinking can impact you physically too. Since your body can’t tell the difference between a real or make-believe threat, it often responds by going into fight or flight mode with intense, panicky sensations like sweaty palms, a racing heart, and stomach issues, says LaLota. Those sensations can also feed into your panic, she says. What a cycle.
Even though you can’t always stop thoughts from popping in your head, you can stop the worst-case-scenario worry from spiraling out of control, notes LaLota. To get to that place of handling your catastrophic thinking better, here are therapist-backed tips you’ll want to screenshot ASAP. (I, Queen of anxious thoughts, will for sure be saving these for later!)
1. Separate yourself from your thoughts.
Getting distance from your thoughts—what’s called defusion—can be the pause you need to see them in a realistic light before you feel out of control, says LaLota. Separating yourself from your thoughts minimizes the power they have because, rather than spiraling, you’re giving yourself time to realize that they’re just…thoughts, she explains.
You can visualize them on a computer screen being typed out or recite them backwards or in a funny voice, LaLota suggests. She also suggests saying, “Oh, what an interesting thought,” to call it out. You can even attribute your catastrophic thoughts to some anxious alter ego named Susan! Some clients have told clinical psychologist Cynthia Shaw, PsyD, that literally just saying “stop” while the worst-case-scenario thoughts are happening helps them snap out of it, she says.
2. Put your catastrophic thoughts on trial.
Assessing the probability of the worst-case scenario can help you think more realistically too. Sure, anything is possible, but is it actually likely? Probs not. So, look at the evidence. If you’re scared of flying because you can’t stop picturing the plane crashing, is there anything about the plane that’s making you believe it’s unsafe? Can you look up stats on how often crashes happen? Jacobsen’s all for doing your own research on plane safety. You can also think about every time you or your friends took plane rides and didn’t crash, she adds. All signs point to a disaster being unlikely.
3. Think about other outcomes.
To help you believe that there are outcomes other than disaster, LaLota suggests answering the following three questions:
- What is the worst-case scenario?
- What’s the absolute best-case scenario?
- What is the most realistic scenario?
Sometimes zooming out puts things into perspective, says LaLota. We’re also teaching our minds how to assess threats more accurately instead of believing our negative thoughts, she notes.
Say you didn’t study for a test. You’re worried you’re going to fail, you’ll flunk the entire class, and you’ll be ashamed for years to come. On the opposite end of possibility, the exam could be easier than you thought and you’d get a great grade. The most probable outcome is that you’d get a below average score on this test but your future won’t suffer too much, says LaLota.
4. Ground yourself.
Jacobsen says that catastrophizing can be like a self-fulfilling prophecy. For example, if you can’t stop worrying about bombing a big presentation, you may get so worked up that you do screw up, she explains. You’re not this all-powerful being who controls life, but catastrophizing about something can work against you.
To avoid stuff like that from happening, you’ll want to calm your body and mind down when they’re in panic mode with grounding techniques. Grounding can help reduce your catastrophic thinking by distracting you from the spiral, bringing you back to the present moment, and soothing the physical sensations you might be having, Dr. Shaw says.
One of Dr. Shaw’s favorite techniques is the 5-4-3-2-1 method, where you identify five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. If that’s not for you, you can also try playing with silly putty, using a fidget toy, or noticing how a rock feels or looks in your hand, she says.
5. Get curious about where your worries come from.
Since past experiences can influence catastrophic thinking, one way to get perspective is to ask: OK, is there something that happened before that’s making me think this way? And: Is there something deeper going on? What am I REALLY afraid of? “A lot of times, [the deeper fear is] either safety and survival, vulnerability, lack of control, shame, or fear of judgment,” says Jacobsen. This investigative work can help surface the underlying issues or experiences triggering your worries, she explains. And that sucks the power away out of your spiral. Also, you can work through what’s making you catastrophize about the present, she notes.
Maybe you’re worried that your friend just canceled plans because they hate you. This stress might not be about your friend though! You might have been betrayed by people in your past and you’re subconsciously (or consciously) trying to protect yourself from experiencing that again, says Jacobsen.
Note: If you’re dealing with past trauma, it might be a good idea to unpack fears associated with that trauma in therapy so you have extra support, Jacobsen says.
6. Physical symptoms are innocent until proven guilty.
For people whose anxiety centers on health, it’s common to worry that every ache or pain means something is terribly wrong, says Jacobsen. (Me! I’m people!) In those instances, try to give whatever you’re feeling time to work itself out, she notes. Chances are, you’ll be OK in a day or two. If not, you can call your doctor.
7. Explore how you’d handle the worst-case scenario.
When we’re anxious, we’re often overestimating how much of a threat something is and underestimating our ability to cope with that threat, says LaLota. But there’s definitely a difference between worrying about the worst outcome (unhelpful!) and planning for what you’d do (helpful!), she explains.
Planning sometimes helps us recognize how unlikely the worst-case scenario is or, at the very least, realize that we’re capable of handling our shit, LaLota notes. “If we have confidence in our ability to cope even when things go wrong, the catastrophe, the worst happening, doesn't seem as daunting because we have that self-trust,” she says.
Here are some questions that can help you feel prepared for the worst, according to LaLota:
- How have you handled a similar situation in the past?
- What can you do or who can you go to in advance to prepare you for this hypothetical situation?
- What skills do you already have that can help you through this?
8. Let go of control.
You can look at the evidence and prepare all you want, but the reality is, technically, nothing is certain. So, sometimes the only thing you can do is relinquish a little bit of control, says Dr. Shaw.
Dr. Shaw recommends imagining the catastrophizing thoughts passing you by—on a log going down a river or on clouds moving across the sky—and just sitting with the emotions you’re feeling without judging. “We cannot protect ourselves from bad things happening,” Jacobsen adds. “That's life. So work on that acceptance [and tell yourself]: I can control what I can, but there's also a lot that is out of my control.”
9. Lean into compassion.
No good comes from shaming worst-case-scenario thinking—have you ever worried about how much you were worrying?! Not helpful! Instead, remind yourself that this is your brain’s way of trying to help you prepare for a bad thing, says LaLota. It has good intentions even if it's a little misguided, she adds. Less shame; more compassion!
Wondermind does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a replacement for medical advice. Always consult a qualified health or mental health professional with any questions or concerns about your mental health.
