“What if…?” is a question that can take our brain in many different directions, some of which are much more helpful than others!
When it’s fuelled by a worry, it can create a cloud of anxious energy. Our thoughts go round and round in our head about what might or could happen, spiralling without a resolution.
This definitely happens to me - to all of us at times - especially if we’re worried about something we can’t predict or control. Our safety instinct kicks into gear and starts imagining the worst.
It’s exhausting though, and the challenge is that it never actually moves us forward. We can get stuck in the doom loop of ‘What if…?’ worrying and never get out.
Fortunately, there’s a way to redirect and find a way through.
If we can notice the looping and point our brain away from the spiral, we can take the same question, and ask it with a different energy - a practical, curious one that genuinely wants to explore.
We can use it as a starting point and focus our thinking on what we would - or could - realistically do if the “What if…?” actually happened.
We can play the imaginary movie forward and reflect on questions such as:
How would we feel? What support would we need? What would our priorities be?
What scenarios can we see? What options might be available to us?
Is there anything we could do now to help set us up for a softer landing? Are there any information gaps it would be useful to fill?
It’s completely normal to have worries, so it’s useful to be able to get them out of our heads and work with them, rather than keeping them trapped inside.
Is there a “What if…?” worry swirling around in your head?
And could you point your brain in a different direction, and ask the same question with a different energy?
Wishing you all a week of problem solving your worrying “What if…?’s”,
