There are positive what ifs too, we just don't usually need to use them. Negative breeds negative so our what if's are usually negative. What if I don't need to panic. What if I'm wrong. etc etc.
Try it, there is a positive what if for every negative one you can think of. If nothing else they get you to stop thinking the negative ones.
Maybe you just weren't ready this time, and now you can be preparing yourself for next time to make sure you're ready :) Challenge those what-if thoughts, as loves tress has said.
Kaitie.
P.S. I have a lot of trouble with the what-ifs too, especially during a panic attack. Does anyone know how to deal with these?
Hello. We have not met yet. I first encountered CBT a few years ago and since then, have gotten better and better at noting negative thoughts and how they affect us.
Since you posted yesterday, you may have already had new and different thoughts about this experience you had at the doctors. I notice in your post a "what if" - "what if this is a new norm". The what if-ing is where I have found CBT very helpful.
Thank you for sharing this experience with us. We are definitely always here to listen. As Davit mentioned we can't change the past but we can definitely learn from our previous experiences and move forward and work toward improving this going forward.
As in most panic and anxiety cases you are building a fear on something you don't know for a fact. In actuality as you get better you will either lose this fear of having your blood pressure taken or as other people, some close to me with white coat syndrome have done, they just accept it as a fact and don't worry about it. This fear is very common. Even me who has no fear of doctors and hospitals and has to go at least once a month for tests has a high BP when the doctor takes it. We associate tests with diseases and just naturally get anxious when tests are done. And BP is a test also though not a marker for anything not fixable.
I treat it as ho hum. I know what it is at home and I know what it is when I'm anxious and some times it has been high. Once so high I was not allowed to go home till it went down, which it did and I am fine. It is supposed to go up when you are anxious. It is only dangerous if it is very high and stays there. It is actually good to go up and down. That is why people exercise.
The fact you are telling us you survived says you can do it again rather than that you can't. And actually when a person gets older they tend not to leave things to the last minute to avoid the pressure. Such a relief to just get it over and get on with things.
There is a saying here. "You can't change the past so it is only important as something to learn by, You don't know the future so it doesn't count till it happens. That only leaves the present. Learn from the past live in the present and let the future take care of itself."
So I built up the nerve to go to my doctors yesterday for my biannual prescription refill. I went a month earlier than I had to because the anticipation and anxiety has been slowly building as my remaining month of pills was running out.
I started the morning with positive thinking and challenging my negative thoughts. As I drove to the office the anxiety began... I arrived at the office and while I sat in the waiting room I was able to do breathing exercises and the palpitation subsided. However when I was called in the office my heart felt as if it was going to beat out of my chest. I tried to tell myself this is the same feeling I experience when I work out nearly on a daily basis. My doctor was in to see me in just a few short minutes. I requested that he not take my blood pressure. His response was "sure I know your normally anxious so it will probably be high." He refilled my prescriptions and I left.
As I drove home I felt absolutely defeated as this was the first time I avoided this situation. I did feel relieved that I was not told that my blood pressure was high. I now fear that this may be the new norm and I will not be able to have it taken again. Today I am still trying to accept the fact that I avoided the situation and move on from this.
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