Does anyone else on this forum always catastrophize upcoming events? I have a pacemaker procedure coming up and, although it’s basically an outpatient appointment and should be straightforward, I keep imagining what could go wrong and it’s really winding me up.
I keep imagining what could go wrong and it’s really winding me up.
The one thing that made the most difference for me was learning mindfulness so I can put things into context easily and shut down that line of negative thinking, but when the nagging thoughts won't stop then I resort to using something I learned at work.
In essence I use parts of the Project Planning methodology which deals with risk management.
What this does is teaches you to map out all the risks in a situation, decide how realistic the chances of them happening is and the impact they would have then you can decide on how to approach them. This is designed for business projects where there is a financial element to any risk and you have to be able to deal with it happening in the real world because sometime bad stuff happens
When you identify a risk you can mitigate the risk in 4 different ways:
1 - reduce. i.e take steps to make the chances of this happening lower. For example if being ill is a risk then change your lifestyle to be healthier, avoid contact with others to catch viruses etc.
2 - share. i.e. if the thing happens then have someone to share the consequences with who understand why you are doing it. For example if you were going to pick up something in you car but your car breaks down then have someone else who can do it for you..
3 - accept. i.e. accept that this thing may happen and you just have to live with it. For example if you book a garden party and it rains then you will probably have everyone indoors instead.
4 - exploit. This is a bit more sophisticated but in the garden party situation then create a mud slide, have games in the paddling pool in the rain etc. You will need to plan for lots of towels to be available for this though.
That is it in a nutshell - it can be much more detailed and comprehensive but it is a handy tool to use when you just can't shut off the catastrophising.
I keep imagining what could go wrong and it’s really winding me up.
The one thing that made the most difference for me was learning mindfulness so I can put things into context easily and shut down that line of negative thinking, but when the nagging thoughts won't stop then I resort to using something I learned at work.
In essence I use parts of the Project Planning methodology which deals with risk management.
What this does is teaches you to map out all the risks in a situation, decide how realistic the chances of them happening is and the impact they would have then you can decide on how to approach them. This is designed for business projects where there is a financial element to any risk and you have to be able to deal with it happening in the real world because sometime bad stuff happens
When you identify a risk you can mitigate the risk in 4 different ways:
1 - reduce. i.e take steps to make the chances of this happening lower. For example if being ill is a risk then change your lifestyle to be healthier, avoid contact with others to catch viruses etc.
2 - share. i.e. if the thing happens then have someone to share the consequences with who understand why you are doing it. For example if you were going to pick up something in you car but your car breaks down then have someone else who can do it for you..
3 - accept. i.e. accept that this thing may happen and you just have to live with it. For example if you book a garden party and it rains then you will probably have everyone indoors instead.
4 - exploit. This is a bit more sophisticated but in the garden party situation then create a mud slide, have games in the paddling pool in the rain etc. You will need to plan for lots of towels to be available for this though.
That is it in a nutshell - it can be much more detailed and comprehensive but it is a handy tool to use when you just can't shut off the catastrophising.
Thanks, Iain.
When it comes to planning ahead, I intend to bring things that will help me block out unpredictable noises, like noise-cancelling headphones and masking apps, in case I have to stay overnight. But (and this might sound silly) I even get stressed about the possibility of nearby patients passing wind, belching, or constantly clearing their throats, because you never know who you might end up next to in a hospital. And I know people don’t intentionally mean to be annoying, so it wouldn’t be fair for me to complain, but it puts me in a conflicting situation, and that itself can be stressful too.
But I take your point about giving yourself options to help mitigate against unpredictable consequences.
