Key Takeaways
Catastrophizing, or catastrophic thinking, leads people to anticipate the worst outcomes in any situation. It’s often accompanied by feelings of helplessness, persistent rumination, and a tendency to magnify minor issues into major concerns.
Catastrophic thinking can significantly impact your physical and mental well-being. It may also be the result of a mental health condition (like an anxiety disorder) which may require professional help to overcome.
Fortunately, you can learn to manage your catastrophizing by increasing self-awareness, challenging negative thoughts, practicing regular self-care, and potentially seeking therapy.
Everyone knows what it’s like to wake up on the wrong side of the bed. Some days, you might feel like nothing is going your way, and this can impact your mood and motivation. But people who struggle with catastrophizing tend to have an overly negative outlook on life most of the time. Instead of being hopeful about the future, they often expect the worst-case scenario to happen.
While everyone can occasionally get stuck in a cycle of negativity, frequent catastrophizing can impact your ability to live a full, balanced life. But fortunately, it’s something that you can manage with the right support.
What is catastrophizing?
Catastrophizing is a negative, hypervigilant mental state that can affect how you view yourself, the world around you, and your emotional response to everyday situations. While it can vary from person to person, it typically shows up in three main ways:
Helplessness: This is an unfounded belief that bad things will continue to happen to you or the people around you, and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it.
Rumination: This is an overwhelming fixation on your problems or challenges coupled with a limited ability to acknowledge the positive aspects of your life.
Magnification: This is a tendency to amplify small problems and constantly worry about something terrible happening in the future.
For some, it might be easy to brush off this sort of thinking as something that’s “just in your head.” But research shows that catastrophizing can have a significant impact on a person’s well-being. For example, one study found that people who have catastrophic thoughts about pain are more likely to experience severe pain.
Examples of catastrophic thinking patterns
Catastrophizing can show up in different ways, and most people fall into one of three patterns.
One pattern is helplessness, where you believe something bad will happen and that you can’t change the outcome. Examples include:
Picturing a plane crash every time you travel and feeling powerless to calm yourself
Assuming your relationship is ending because your partner had an off day
Believing a job rejection is guaranteed the moment you submit an application.
Another pattern is rumination. This occurs when your mind gets stuck replaying problems and pushes out anything positive. Examples include:
Focusing only on one small suggestion in an otherwise positive work review
Replaying a minor disagreement for hours and convincing yourself you ruined the friendship
Getting stuck at night worrying about simple tasks and telling yourself it means you’re failing
The third pattern is magnification, in which small issues feel huge and scary. Examples include:
Spiraling into fears of a major illness when faced with something like a mild headache
Assuming someone is upset with you because they haven’t texted back yet
Worrying a tiny email mistake might cost you your job
Why do people catastrophize?
We don’t have a full understanding of the causes of catastrophic thinking. For some people, it could be a coping behavior they learned from their family of origin. Or it could be the result of experiencing a life-changing or traumatic event. For others, it could be related to a mental health condition like an anxiety disorder.
Catastrophizing may also be the result of a person’s unique brain chemistry. Specifically, it may be related to changes in the areas of the brain that control your fight-or-flight response, memory and recall, and complex thinking. Thankfully, there are many treatments that can help you address your catastrophizing, no matter the underlying cause.
How to stop catastrophizing in five steps
Catastrophizing is a distressing experience that can take a toll on your mental health. But you can learn to interrupt your negative thoughts using the following steps.
Identify catastrophic thinking. Increasing your self-awareness is an important first step in overcoming catastrophizing. Start to notice when your catastrophic thinking occurs. What makes it worse? What helps you feel more at peace?
Try reality testing. When a catastrophic thought arises, consider whether you have evidence that the negative experience you’re envisioning is likely to happen. Try to differentiate what’s possible versus what’s likely.
Replace negative thoughts. Keep in mind that it may take some time to shift your outlook. But when a negative thought arises, see if you can replace it with a positive, realistic one. For example, if you think “I’ll never be any good at this,” you can say to yourself “This feels hard now, but with some practice, I know I can improve.”
Practice self-care. Your physical and mental health are deeply connected. So try to make time for exercise, eat a balanced diet, get adequate rest, and spend time doing activities that reduce stress.
Look into cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This form of therapy can help you identify and replace unwanted thought patterns. CBT can also help address symptoms of mental health concerns that can sometimes accompany catastrophic thinking.
Clinician's take
Catastrophizing thrives on the belief that your thoughts are facts. One way to interrupt it is to gently ask, ‘What do I actually know for sure right now — and what am I filling in with fear?’ When you slow the story down and focus on the present moment, the intensity often softens, and you can respond.
Brandy Chalmers, LPC
Clinical reviewer
Find care with Rula
If you’re having trouble controlling your worries or negative thoughts, know that you can interrupt the cycle and learn to see things in a more positive light. With Rula, you can access the specialized mental healthcare you need to address your catastrophizing from the comfort of home.
In just a few minutes, you can explore our diverse provider network to find a therapist who takes your insurance. And thanks to our extensive therapist network and streamlined digital platform, you can start therapy as soon as tomorrow.
