Unfuck Your Brain: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-outs, and Triggers

by Faith G. Harper

Think about the last time you felt anxious and write down some notes for each of these five letters: In Seligman’s model the A stands for Adversity. What bullshit is going down that generally triggers your anxiety response? B stands for Belief. What are your beliefs about this event? Be honest, if your anxiety is triggered a lot, you are probably running a thought pattern in the direction of “THIS IS FUCKED!” C stands for Consequences, though really it should stand for Cookie. Seligman didn’t agree with me that once you think that shit’s fucked you should go have a cookie. Instead, he wants you to look at how you reacted to the situation and to your beliefs. D stands for Disputation. This is where you literally argue with the neg-gremlins your brain is throwing down and focus your attention on a new way of coping. Remember the storytelling brain? Create a new story to use instead. And finally, E stands for Energization. What was the outcome of focusing your attention on a different way of reacting? Even if you were still pretty anxious, did you handle the situation better than you may have in the past? Over time, with doing this, do you notice that your anxiety is starting to fizzle out FINALLY?