The good part about catastrophizing is that when you expect the worst and it does not happen, you are overwhelmed with joy that you would not have if you were not catastrophizing.
I wrote this on my Facebook last night after spending 3 hours at the dentist yesterday.
To say I was anxious about my dentist appointment is quite an understatement. But I went anyway. I hadn't been to a dentist in over a year and I knew my teeth had gotten worse. I thought the worse and so I kept putting off going to the dentist.
To say I was relieved to get some good news is also an understatement. During my catastrophizing and "worst-case-scenario"-izing, I had come up with the worst case scenario... I'm going to have to get all my teeth pulled, then I won't be able to pay for dentures, then I won't get a job, then I won't have insurance, then I won't be able to pay for my psychiatric medications, then I'll end up homeless and on the streets and then I'll die from a tooth infection....
And yeah... that does not seem to be reality.
I think I started castastrophizing as a child as a coping mechanism... Think the worst, then when it doesn't come true, you're happy. I think it's good sometimes to be prepared.
However, I also think it's not healthy to be in constant fear and worry of the worst. I was absolutely dreading yesterday's appointment for the past two weeks. "The 15th" kept going through my head with the music from Jaws running in the background.
Sometimes we need to let go and let God. We need to trust that God really does have our back and that He will take care of us. At one point in my appointment, during the X-rays, I prayed to God and I put all of my trust in Him. From that point on, I knew I would be okay.
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