Future Tense

1. Anxiety is a Fundamentally Human Emotion with Evolutionary Roots

It is a fundamentally human emotion, our companion since Homo sapiens walked upright.

Ancient Origins. Anxiety is not a modern invention but a deeply ingrained emotion that has been with us since the dawn of humanity. It's an evolutionary adaptation that has helped us survive by preparing us for potential threats.

• Anxiety activates our nervous system, leading to physical sensations like a racing heart and racing thoughts.
• The word "anxiety" itself comes from Latin and Greek roots meaning "to choke" or "painfully constricted," highlighting its physical and emotional impact.

Survival Tool. Negative emotions, including anxiety, are not merely destructive but advantageous tools for survival. Darwin's research showed that emotions are adaptations that protect and ensure the survival of humans and other animals. From an evolutionary perspective, emotions embody the logic of survival.

Functional Emotion Theory. This theory posits that emotions have two dynamic parts: appraisal and action readiness. Anxiety, in this context, is a protective alarm bell that triggers discomfort and apprehension about future threats. It also motivates us to work hard and achieve our goals.

2. Anxiety and Fear are Distinct but Related Responses

Fear is the immediate, certain response to a real danger in the present moment that ends when the threat is over. Anxiety is apprehension about the uncertain, imagined future and the vigilance that keeps us on high alert.

Fear vs. Anxiety. While often used interchangeably, fear and anxiety are distinct emotions. Fear is an immediate response to a known, present danger, while anxiety is apprehension about a potential, uncertain future threat.

• Fear is reflexive and automatic, like jumping back from a warm, furry thing in a box.
• Anxiety involves anticipation and vigilance, like waiting for biopsy results or preparing for a speech.

Complex Emotions. Fear is considered a basic emotion, shared with animals, while anxiety is a complex emotion unique to humans. Complex emotions transcend instinct and are more amenable to our thinking our way out of them.

The Spaces In Between. Anxiety exists in the spaces between learning about a potential threat and its arrival, and between making plans and taking action. It's the uncertainty that makes anxiety hard to bear.

3. Anxiety Exists on a Spectrum, Not as a Binary State

Everyday anxiety is nothing surprising; we all experience worries, concerns, even moments of panic sometimes.

Anxiety as a Dimmer Switch. Anxiety isn't an on/off switch but a dimmer sliding up and down. Low-level anxiety is often present without us even noticing, while high-intensity anxiety can feel overwhelming.

• Mild anxiety can occur when meeting a new boss or seeing snow while packing for a drive home.
• Moderate anxiety includes social anxiety, like fearing judgment or negative evaluation from others.

Fluctuating Feelings. Over hours or minutes, we can move from mild worry to high-intensity dread and back to relief or calm. Even high anxiety is just a point on a spectrum that we can usually dial back.

Coping Mechanisms. The problem isn't anxiety itself but the thoughts and behaviors we use to cope with it. Ineffective coping mechanisms can worsen anxiety and lead to anxiety disorders.

4. The Problem Isn't Anxiety, But How We Cope with It

The key problem for people diagnosed with an anxiety disorder is not just that they experience intense anxiety; it’s that the tools they have at their disposal to turn down the dial on those feelings are not effective.

Functional Impairment. The crucial distinction between anxiety and an anxiety disorder is functional impairment. The disorder involves long-lasting feelings that interfere with pursuing things we treasure most, such as home life, work, and time with friends.

Ineffective Coping. People with anxiety disorders often use tools to cope with anxiety that are not effective, such as avoiding situations or suppressing feelings. These attempted solutions only make anxiety worse.

A Crisis of Coping. We're not in a public health anxiety crisis but in a crisis of how we cope with anxiety. Like ignoring a smoke alarm, we often ignore or avoid anxiety instead of listening to the critical information it provides.

5. Anxiety is Intimately Tied to Our Ability to Imagine the Future

Anxiety for the future time disposeth men to enquire into the causes of things.

Mental Time Travel. Anxiety and hope make us mental time travelers, heading straight into the future. They shape our actions in the present by influencing our expectations and preparations for what's to come.

The Prefrontal Cortex. The development of the prefrontal cortex allowed humans to imagine things that aren't happening, simulate reality, and visualize possible outcomes. This ability is a key evolutionary advantage.

Varieties of Future Thinking. The ways we think about the future range from optimism to pessimism and from believing we are in control to feeling captive to fate. Anxiety falls along these grooves in surprising ways.

6. We Have Been Misled to View Anxiety as a Disease

The transformation of anxiety from advantageous emotion into unwanted disease did not happen overnight.

Historical Context. The perception of anxiety has evolved over centuries. In the medieval period, it was tied to spiritual anguish. The Enlightenment shifted the focus to the mind, and modern medicine medicalized it.

The Church's Influence. The Catholic Church made anxiety a key component of spiritual life, describing the anguished suffering of the soul, entrapped by sin, passionately yearning for redemption, and terrified of the eternal tortures of Hell.

The Medicalization of Anxiety. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) has played a key role in medicalizing anxiety, defining distinct types of anxiety-related diseases with specific diagnostic criteria.

7. The Medicalization of Anxiety Has Led to Over-Reliance on Pharmaceuticals

We have been convinced that the best approach to dealing with anxiety is to become comfortably numb.

A Brief History of Chemical Calm. Barbiturates were initially used to suppress anxiety but were dangerous. Benzodiazepines, like Valium and Xanax, became popular as safer alternatives but also have risks of dependence and abuse.

The Opioid Crisis. The opioid crisis demonstrates our societywide desire to eradicate all pain, both physical and emotional. The pharmaceutical industry played a significant role in fueling this crisis.

Teenagers and Chemical Coping. The trend of dulling feelings with pills has made the world a more dangerous place, especially for young people. Teenagers are increasingly turning to medications like Xanax to manage their anxieties.

8. Digital Technologies Can Both Alleviate and Exacerbate Anxiety

Anxiety and digital technology seem inextricably linked.

The Ultimate Escape Machines. Digital devices offer an easy escape from anxieties and worries. However, overuse can lead to increased feelings of isolation and exhaustion.

Active vs. Passive Use. The way we use social media impacts our anxiety levels. Active use, like sharing content and connecting with friends, can be beneficial, while passive use, like browsing and scrolling, can increase anxiety and depression.

Casino-Like Design. Devices, websites, and social media platforms are designed to keep us engaged, using techniques like the infinite scroll and intermittent rewards to hook us in.

9. Uncertainty is a Core Component of Anxiety, But Also a Catalyst for Action

Uncertainty is the only certainty there is, and knowing how to live with insecurity is the only security.

The Human Condition. Every day is a set of probabilities, a gamble that what usually happens is likely to happen again. It's this tension that makes us sit up and take notice, because we know that whatever happens next could be terrible or wonderful or just meh.

Our Brains Seek Out Uncertainty. Our brains don't ignore uncertainty; they lean into it. Evolution has designed the human brain to automatically and effortlessly pay attention to the unexpected, the unpredictable, and the novel.

The Pandemic of Uncertainty. The COVID-19 pandemic brought uncertainty to the forefront, forcing us to confront questions about our health, safety, and future. This uncertainty inspired us to take action, from wearing masks to making lists.

10. Anxiety Can Be a Powerful Driver of Creativity and Innovation

Thus our human power to resolve the conflict between expectation and reality—our creative power—is at the same time our power to transcend neurotic anxiety and to live with normal anxiety.

Creativity Defined. Creativity is any transformation we make from one state to another. It's seeing connections where others might not and pursuing them with curiosity, energy, and openness.

Anxiety and Fluency. Activating moods such as anger, joy, and anxiety increase our energy level and motivate us to do something. People who feel moderately more anxious come up with more ideas, and ones that are more innovative.

From Anxiety to Action. Even when anxiety feels overwhelming, it can be a wellspring of creativity. It's a call to dig deeper into what's going on in our hearts and minds, rather than just skim above it as we normally do because we fear being dragged down into our emotions.

11. Kids Are Not Fragile: We Must Allow Them to Experience and Manage Anxiety

If an anxiety, like light and the shadows of clouds, passes over your hands and over all you do, you must suppose that something is acting upon you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hands.

Antifragility. Humans are not fragile but antifragile, meaning they grow stronger because of challenges, difficulties, and uncertainties. Anxiety, like the immune system, needs exposure to challenges to develop.

The Marvelous Teenage Brain. The teen brain develops in a way that confers much more advantage than we give it credit for. The staggered brain development radically differs from that of nonhuman primates.

Emotional Snowplowing. Protective parenting has evolved into "snowplow parenting," where parents forcibly remove every potential obstacle from their children's paths, including emotions like anxiety.

12. To Be Anxious in the Right Way, Listen, Let Go When Needed, and Act Purposefully

To learn to be anxious in the right way is to learn the ultimate.

Three Fundamental Principles. To be anxious in the right way, follow these principles:

1. Anxiety is information about the future; listen to it.
2. If anxiety isn't useful, let it go for the moment.
3. If anxiety is useful, do something purposeful with it.

Curiosity is Key. Approach anxiety with curiosity rather than fear. Realize that anxiety is safe to investigate and that it can provide valuable insights.

Channel Anxiety Toward Purpose. Harness anxiety to pursue your values and priorities. Whether it's family, work, hobbies, or communities, find a purpose that gives your life meaning and let anxiety fuel your efforts.

Last updated: March 9, 2025