144. Anticipatory Anxiety is Expensive

The Mindful Healers Podcast with Dr. Jessie Mahoney and Dr. Ni-Cheng Liang

Do you worry about things in advance? Do you catastrophize?

Anticipatory anxiety is expensive.

In this episode, Ni-Cheng recounts when her passport became accidentally soaked while traveling. She shares about her experience with catastrophizing and anticipatory worry and how mindfulness, compassion, and coaching helped.

Anticipatory anxiety arises in most of our lives regularly. Habitual mindsets of urgency, negative attention bias, and discomfort with uncertainty come up also.

Helpful strategies to lessen worrying ahead of time:

• Notice what is happening

• Place your hand on heart

• Be open to “maybes”

• Asking your future self what you will wish you had done

• Focus on what’s within your control

• (When helpful) Ask what’s the worst that could happen?

Most of the time, circumstances that bring about worry end up turning out better than expected. And you wish you had pasued and been present rather than having spent the time and energy worrying.

To learn how to lessen worry, join Jessie for coaching- Ongoing Presence Small Group, 1:1, and/or a retreat coaching experience will change your life: www.jessiemahoneymd.com

If you work in healthcare and are not already a member , please join mindfulhealthcarecollective.com and our Facebook group here: www.facebook.com/groups/mindfulhealthcarecollective

*Nothing in this episode should be considered medical advice.