Oftentimes as addicts we ruminate about people, places, and things in the future and play out various negative scenarios in our heads. The control we have exercised in our lives to prevent anyone from finding out the truth about us spills over into future events that we really have no control over. The anxiety created by this "future-tripping" becomes so overwhelming at times that we end up drinking or using over situations that never play out.
This phenomenon of catastrophizing is such a prevalent occurrence amongst addicts that there are several acronyms floating around in the rooms of AA that describe it. Here's a few of my favorites:
- FEAR-false evidence appearing real
- FEAR-failure expected and received
- FEAR-frustration, ego, anxiety, resentment
These acronyms convey the futility involved in "future-tripping" and even worrying about the past. They demonstrate how this type of thinking only serves to turn our lives into ongoing catastrophies. If we could spend the same amount of mental energy focusing on what's currently going on around us, we might find ourselves getting outside of ourselves and enjoying life as it is-not as our addicted brain is seeing it.
Related Links:
http://psychcentral.com/lib/2007/what-is-catastrophizing/
http://www.ispeak.com/docs/CutTheCRAPch2.pdf
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