Is it Anxiety or Worry?

I took a trip with my friend Josephine recently, and well, it was a bit of a mess

-Oh no

I was really worried about getting to the airport on time, and making sure we didn't miss our flight

So I made sure I was all packed, I had a ride to the airport and had double checked I had everything so I wouldn't be late

-Makes sense

Exactly! She found our time away very distressing! I planned in advance so my worry wouldn't become a reality

And once we were sitting on that plane, my worries disappeared and I could focus on enjoying my trip

-What about Josephine?

I'm glad you asked!

Josephine was anxious before and during the entire trip

She was preoccupied with everything that could go wrong and expected the worst on our travels

Having our luggage stolen, getting kidnapped by pirates, accidentally landing on a time-traveling island... everything!

-Oh no!

She found our time away very distressing, but when we returned I noticed that she was no longer anxious

Instead, she channeled her anxious feelings into different things

..like her family, work, or health

-Interesting

Can you spot the main difference between our feelings?

Is it 

A: I wanted to go on vacation more

B: I was experiencing worry, while Josephine was feeling anxious

C: Jasmine was being cautious while I was being foolish 

D: I didn't miss my family and friends but Jasmine did

-B?

Woah, you're right!

That was super difficult to spot, but you seem to have your thinking hat on 

Did you know there is a difference between feeling anxious and healthy worry?

-Perhaps

A very knowledgeable soul you are!

Would you like to do a little trivia game and see if we can learn a thing or two about what makes them different?

-Sure

Okay, great!

Which of these is NOT an attribute of worry?

A: Time-limited

B: Planning and preparing

C: Daily disruption

D: Problem-solving

-C?

correct!

Once the particular issue is resolved, the worry usually disappears

Anxious feelings tend to linger and often disrupt daily activities and even future events

Which of these is NOT an attribute of anxiety?

A: Avoidance

B: Persistence over time

C: Procrastination

D: Specific event

-D?

Good job!

Worry tends to be centered around a more specific event as opposed to a broad feeling!

Is the following more anxious or worried?

"I want to go out partying, but what if nobody talks to me?

"...or even worse, they do and bees start flying out of my mouth! Or my circuits catch on fire and then so do the bees!

I haven't been able to do any of my work today because my thoughts are consumed with bees on fire!"

Can you tell me why the thought is more anxious than worried?

-It's catastrophizing?

Yeah, so it's primarily because this thought consists of "Avoidance," it infringes on daily activities, and it persisted over time

Is the following anxious or worried?

"I have to do a presentation at work and I'm nervous because sometimes I short circuit under pressure. I am usually uncomfortable public speaking so I am going to prepare and rehearse before the actual day so I can really nail it!"

-Worried

Well done!

You are indeed correct, can you write down why?

-Because it's just one event

Yes, it's considered worry because it's about a specific task, it utilizes the feeling of worry to plan and prepare and it triggers problem-solving strategies

Can you rewrite the following thought from being an example of anxiety to an example of healthy worry?

"I hate job interviews, I never do well at them and I always say foolish things!

I shouldn't bother--I'm just wasting the interviewers time! I won't be able to sleep for the whole week, I'm so anxious!"

-"I'm concerned about my job interview, so I'm going to set aside time to prepare and practice so I can look as polished as possible. If it doesn't go well, I'll accepts it and move on to the next one"

Good going!

It's easy to confuse anxiety and worry

But it's important to be able to spot the difference

That's it for worry and anxiety for today!

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