Imagine Yourself One Day From Now
When you are in a panic, imagine how you might feel even one day from now.
Two years ago, I went on a solo writing/book prep trip in advance of my Spring 2022 book publication. It was the first flight I’d been on in quite some time due to the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic and I was wrecked with anxiety about flying. I was nervous about the trip for many reasons, mainly childcare and the idea of being solo on a trip (which always ends up being lovely, but can seem so lonely at first), but prior to arriving at the airport I hadn’t even registered how anxious I’d be to get on a plane full of people again.
I’ve always been a germaphobe and a global pandemic made me even more germophobic (imagine that), but I arrived to an extremely busy and overcrowded gate at the airport and straight panic ensued. Where you might have seen people, I saw germs and what looked like an inevitable sickness, what was I thinking getting on a plane for a voluntary, self-initiated trip?! True story, I called my husband crying behind my mask and saying “I might not be able to get on this plane.” I hadn’t felt this before or at least not in a long time, a panic attack.
There are lots of tips and tricks out there for attacks of all sizes. You might be a regular visitor to that feeling in your body and mind, or maybe you’ve been there once or twice and you didn’t really know it. But here’s something I learned on that trip, when you are in the moment of panic, try to imagine how you might feel one day from now. Or if that’s too ambitious, maybe even a few hours from where you are. Picture yourself on the other side of the activity, the other side of the attack. I can say this easily now, because a few hours after this panic attack, I was poolside in Austin, TX reading an advance reader copy of my book, all by myself. I know the reward that was on the other side of following through, trudging through the anxiety.
There might not be a sunny and warm feeling waiting for you poolside, but there is some reward on the other side. Something that’s worth it, I know this, because we wouldn’t put ourselves through these things if there wasn’t something good, something important to us on the other side. And while this is not clinically proven in any way, it worked for me and I think it will work for you too, imagine yourself on the other side. Put in your headphones with a comforting song, put on a mask if you need to (physically and metaphorically) and imagine getting off the plane, checking into the hotel, leaving the appointment, waking up in the morning after spending the night alone, finishing the conversation, whatever it may be. Visualizing your future self and the confidence you’ll feel after completion; can help you get to and through the activity in the first place.
Instead of thinking about what you have to do, start imagining future you, on the other side.