What is catastrophizing thinking?

It is surprisingly easy to fall into the trap of catastrophizing no matter how level-headed we are. Jumping straight away to the worst-case scenario and imagining all sorts of terrible things until you are in a state of anxiety and stress.

We can all be prone to thinking the worst at times, it is part of what it is to be human. The odd irrational thoughts we have that life is always going to be awful, and that the situation that we find ourselves in is never going to change.

Most of us will snap out of this way of thinking after we have examined the irrational thoughts that we are having and have replaced them with new, positive ones.

Other people though will tend to catastrophize about a situation and will begin to see it as being far worse than it is or will imagine that there will never be a change in their circumstances. These are people who are prone to catastrophizing thinking.

What is catastrophizing a symptom of?

Catastrophizing isn’t a mental health illness, it is a way of thinking, called cognitive distortion.

Cognitive distortions are habits in our way of thinking that are negative and normally inaccurate. A cognitive distortion would be, “ I will never be able to do….”.

This unhelpful and harmful way of thinking can lead to feelings of stress anxiety, and depression and can cause difficulties in relationships and jobs.

When someone overthinks, worries or has thoughts that aren’t based on accuracy, then they can be prone to catastrophizing.

It is an easy trap to fall into if you aren’t aware of the negative thoughts that you have in your mind. When people are present with their thoughts and examine the validity of what they are thinking they are less likely to have catastrophizing thoughts.

If a person is prone to constant NATs ( negative automatic thoughts) then they are far more likely to find themselves caught in the trap of catastrophizing.

What are examples of catastrophizing thinking?

There are many examples of catastrophizing thoughts. How many times have you had them without even realising? Have you ever caught yourself saying things such as;

• “ Oh there must have been a terrible accident because my partner isn’t home yet”

• “If I don’t pass this exam today, I never will”

• “I’ll never be able to lose weight and will always be fat”

• “I’ll never be good enough to meet anyone”

• “I’m stuck in this job and I will never get a better one”

• “Nobody will ever find me attractive and I will always be alone”

These examples of catastrophizing thoughts can highlight the negative impact that these thoughts can have on mental well-being. Constantly thinking in this way can lead to depression, lack of confidence and low self-esteem.

If you feel that you are someone who suffers from this way of thinking then the tips below will highlight the various ways that you can eradicate this negative thinking from your life.

19 Ways How to Stop Catastrophizing Thoughts

1. Identify catastrophic thoughts

The first thing that you need to do is to identify the catastrophic thought that you are having. Sometimes, you may have been repeating the same thought over and over for so long that you are almost unaware that you are having it. Bringing it to the forefront of your mind and acknowledging it, is the first step to eradicating it from your cognitive processes.

2. Use Journaling to write down your fearful thoughts

Journaling is an amazing tool for identifying and eradicating harmful thoughts from your mind. The simple act of writing down what you are thinking and feeling can throw up the thoughts that aren’t serving you. It can also pinpoint triggers that may be causing this negative thinking.

Over time with continued journaling, you will be able to see the pattern of your thoughts and how they have changed as you begin to replace negative thoughts with positive ones.

3. Adopt the practice of meditation

Sitting quietly and practising meditation is an amazing way to calm a cluttered, overactive mind and to aid relaxation and eradicate stress.

More often than not, catastrophizing is a result of being stressed or anxious and so taking some time out away from a situation can order and restore your mind.

4. Change your daily routine

Continued negative thinking patterns can often be tied up in a routine. For example, if you constantly go to bed and rise late, you may find that you are always running behind in the morning. This in turn can lead you to catastrophize that you are always going to be late and may be sacked. Changing your routine to going to bed and rising earlier can completely change your negative thinking pattern.

5. Concentrate on helping other people

If you find that you tend to catastrophize when you aren’t occupied then you need to do something to fill your time. Look into volunteering and helping others as a way of occupying your mind. This is something that will aid you and your local community.

6. Put everything into perspective

“If you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.” This quote from Wayne Dyer perfectly sums up how if you put things in perspective you can eradicate catastrophizing. Blowing a situation up out of all proportions is never going to be helpful to any situation. Keep thoughts in perspective to minimise the negative effects they can have on you.

7. Put your energy into only things you can control

There are things you can and things you can’t control in life, and that is a fact. Some circumstances are never going to be controlled by you no matter how much you stress or worry about them.

Focus your energy and attention ONLY on the situations that you have control over.

8. Use the past as a guide for how to deal with things

You can never change the past but you can always learn from it. If you are faced with a similar situation that you have had in the past, think about how you dealt with it. If you dealt with it negatively, learn from the errors that you made then and adapt your thinking to deal with it now.

9. Ask yourself what is the worst that can happen then move forward from there

So often in life, when your brain jumps to the worst-case scenario, it is never going to happen. If you imagined this scenario ask yourself if it did happen how would you deal with it? How would you move forward? Having these thoughts and plans in your mind is almost like having a mental safety net in place in case anything does happen. You will have already planned what you would do and how you would cope and so would have mentally prepared yourself.

10. Keep to the facts, don’t let your imagination run riot

The brain can be a dangerous place to inhabit. It can constantly let the imagination take over and force unhelpful inaccurate thoughts to overtake rational thinking. When you feel stressed or anxious, stick to facts and don’t let falsehoods take over.

11. Make sure you get enough sleep

Sleep is one of the best ways to aid stress and anxiety. When the mind is tired it can have far more irrational, unhelpful thoughts. Make sure that you get adequate good quality sleep. Stick to a regular sleep-wake pattern and learn to relax as much as possible before bedtime.

12. Use mindfulness to stay in the present moment

Mindfulness is another great tool to use if you suffer from negative thinking. Projecting negative thoughts into the future is unhelpful and a waste of time. Nobody knows what is going to happen in the future so why think of the worst-case outcomes as yours?

Practice mindfulness and stay in the present moment. Think of a helpful positive thought and concentrate on this instead. When your mind wanders in a negative direction, make sure that you have a positive thought that you can concentrate on mindfully.

13. Become physically active

Nothing will occupy the brain quite like doing something physical. Exercising, going for a walk, or dancing are all ways of making the mind concentrate on other more positive thoughts.

As well as occupying the mind, exercise will also release feel-good hormones into the body making you feel happier and less stressed.

14. Ask “is this thought rational?”

If you catch yourself having the same thought over and over again, ask yourself if it is a rational thought that is serving you. If not then take steps to eradicate it from your mind.

15. Use the power of positive affirmations

A simple yet very effective way of replacing negative thinking with positive thoughts is to use positive affirmations.

If you are someone who constantly runs yourself down or thinks negatively about occurrences in your life then try listing a set of positive affirmations that you say morning and evening to yourself. Affirmations such as “ I always succeed in everything I do” or “I am popular and have lots of friends”

The process of repeating the affirmations over and over again will mean that they become your dominant thoughts.

16. Focus on a positive outcome to what you are catastrophizing about

If you catch yourself catastrophizing about a certain situation, turn it into a positive one instead. If you are worried about exam results and keep telling yourself that you have failed and will never progress in life, tell yourself instead that you have passed and will be able to attain anything you strive for.

17. Learn to control your breathing

Your breath and how you control it can affect how you feel mentally. Think about a situation where you are stressed, your breathing could be shallow and rapid, or you could find it difficult to breathe. This in turn can result in you being more anxious and so the circle continues.

Learn to control your breathing, breathe in for the count of four, hold for four and breathe out for four. Controlled breathing will help you to focus your mind and think more positively.

18. Adopt a routine of self-care to be kind to yourself

Being kind to others is something that most of us do automatically but being kind to yourself doesn’t come as easily to some people.

Self-care is a kindness that you can practice on yourself that will help you to feel better, remove stress and anxiety and help you have more positive and helpful thoughts.

Try a daily self-care routine, it can be something small and easy to do such as a 10-minute meditation, reading a chapter of a book or listening to your favourite album. Build this into your day and it will soon become automatic.

19. Use the skills of a life coach or other medical professional

For anyone struggling to rid their mind of catastrophic thinking then hire the skills of a life coach. A life coach is trained in tools and techniques that you can use to change your thinking. They are there for you as you go through the process, aiding you, listening to you and encouraging you. They can hold you accountable to really make the changes in your thinking

Final Thoughts

Catastrophizing is a common cognitive disorder that can affect anyone, especially if they are going through a period of stress. Practising the tips above can aid in eradicating these thoughts from your mind

Following a well-balanced holistic lifestyle of healthy food, exercise, good quality sleep and meditation, can help to reduce stress and anxiety and control negative thought processes.

If you feel that you would like help in tackling negative thinking then click here “How to control negative thinking”.

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