Anticipatory Anxiety: A Guide to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy...

Do you often find yourself dreading an event days or weeks in advance? With varying success, you try to convince yourself to go somewhere while planning escape routes, explanations for failure, driving yourself into a painful state of anxiety? This could be about a social event, a presentation, or a doctor's visit. Or even your own wedding, meeting an old friend, or traveling. But for you, seemingly mundane events turn into unbearable trials. If you can relate to such situations, you are likely suffering from anticipatory anxiety.

Traditional attempts to "deal with anxiety" often mean the desire to "get rid of anxiety," which paradoxically leads to an increase in it. The authors argue that a more helpful approach is to allow anxiety to exist and accept it. The techniques in this book, based on modern principles of evidence-based psychology, will help you accept your feelings. You will "catch" the thoughts that make you avoid certain events and render you paralyzed. Productive work with anticipatory anxiety will enable you to choose your own path, shedding the burden of anxious limitations. You will free yourself from catastrophic thinking.

When you learn to succumb less to anxious perfectionism, you will be able to move forward, making the best possible decisions. And most importantly, you will be able to face your fears head-on and lead a vigorous, passionate life.