Catastrophic thinking

How much catastrophic thinking do you indulge in on a daily basis? It's a really interesting question especially if you're someone who worries a lot. I've noticed that it's really made a big difference in my life that I've become aware of when I spiral off into catastrophic thinking... because as soon as I notice it, I can also just stop and bring myself back to this here-now moment where everything is just fine!

Well just to backtrack for a moment - what do I mean by catastrophic thinking? Well catastrophic thinking is basically when we go off into some future scenario with all our "what if" thoughts. Like - what if the plane crashes and I die? What if they don't like me? What if I get sick? What if I don't have enough money? What if... As soon as you find yourself doing the "what if" stuff, you know you're into catastrophic thinking. Because the reality is - we don't know what is going to happen 5 minutes from now. The only thing we know for sure is that right now, right this minute, we are here now - doing the best we can in this moment. Which is pretty ok. So you will probably discover (just as I did) that as soon as you pull yourself back to this now moment you find yourself breathing easier and maybe even smiling.

Anyway for starters - I suggest just trying to notice when your mind goes crazy with catastrophic thinking and then gently bring yourself back to now.  And see how your life changes...