#5 Two Ways to Build Tolerance for Uncertainty - Overcoming Worry & Anxiety | Dr. Rami Nader

The way to overcome intolerance of uncertainty is through behavioral exposure to uncertainty using tolerating uncertainty experiments. Challenging your worry predictions and what your anxiety is telling you is going to happen. There are two ways to do these tolerating uncertainty experiments. The first is by planning to do something you are uncertain about and consciously thinking about what the worry is telling you is going to happen. The worry is your prediction of what is going to happen. Then you do the experiment and collect the data - what actually happened when you did the tolerating uncertainty experiment? Based on what happened, you come up with a conclusion about the validity or accuracy of your worry prediction. The other way to build tolerance for uncertainty is to take advantage of naturally occurring opportunities to tolerate uncertainty by constantly thinking about the following questions: If I were more tolerant for uncertainty, what would I do in this situation?

What you will find over time with these experiments is that your worry is not a very good predictor of what is going to happen. And the more you do these experiments, the more experience you have with uncertainty and get to see that it rarely turns out negatively, as your worry predicted.

#GAD #Worry #CBT

Videos in the worry management series:

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[DrRamiNader]

What are some tolerating uncertainty experiments that you have done?

[jakech]

“My life has been full of terrible misfortune, most of which never happened.”

[jmgalindojr]

My intolerance of uncertainty has driven me close to the point of suicide. I’d rather deal with the certainty of death than the uncertainty of life I found this video at a very very bleak time in my life and I’m so glad I did. I’m going to put my intolerant worries to the test and see what happens and systematically expose myself to enough uncertainty that it no longer drives me to the brink of suicide. Thank you so much. I haven’t felt hope in so long I could cry. Thank you! I’m so grateful to have seen this. I love it when the universe gives me exactly what I need exactly when I need it. Thank you!

[tnijoo]

I find that with these videos I really need to watch them twice. The first time to sort of plant a seed to sort of think about and then the second time days later to come back and listen again how to implement. I am not sure. Does anyone else have that?

[elenora]

This makes me want to write out a list of situations I’ve worried about that turned out fine as a reminder that my intolerance to uncertainty didn’t help or change anything other than add unnecessary stress

[gratefulagoraphobe]

It's led to my severe OCD. I realised that I can't handle not knowing or being in control of everything so I use OCD. It makes me feel like I have control but it actually takes it all away because you become a slave to it. It a paradox. You know it's illogical but you have to do it. Becoming used to uncertainty is key to living with it

[ba]

This is truly amazing. I’ve just realised I experienced a massive traumatic event in my early years(10-12). I couldn’t tell anyone for fear of how they’d react and shame. It was the uncertainty of being exposed (since someone took an unauthorised picture of my body and sent it to someone who would expose it)

For 3 years I was uncertain but ultimately knew those people didn’t like me and would come out. I kept ruminating and catastrophising everyday. When they came out I got beaten and isolated for fear of shame etc.

till this day i have realised those feelings of uncertainty trigger those same feelings somatically arise.

It’s plagued my life and avoid uncertainty at all cost.

I can’t help but despise uncertainty. But i have now acknowledged this and can’t wait to work on this and get uncomfortable because i don’t want to be paralysed by uncertainty’s

[violetmartin]

Hi Dr Rami, Thank you so much for all your excellent video’s, they are helping me so much to understand about worrying about things that never happened, I have been this way for about 65years, have finally got a bit of hope that I scan change my way of thinking. 🇬🇧👍

[upscduniya]

Dr Rami I am from India. You are a gem. I keep on ruminating about something very absurd. I got admission in my grad college through a competitive exam. The results came online, but an official result used to come through post mail. Due to some address issue, that mail never came. When i took admission in college, they gave me admission but asked me to submit the official result. 4 years passed, i graduated from college and got my degree. But now i remember that i never submitted that doc, neither the college bothered. But this fear keeps on popping that at some point of time, the college will call me cancel my degree and my whole life will be over and i will feel a terrible shame and i will be called a fake.

I sound ridiculous, but i cant do but think about it again and again

[Heropt]

I can’t express to you how much I appreciate your content. I never comment on YouTube videos, but you’ve help me adjust my mindset in dealing with uncertainty in life.

[biondna]

I am so glad to have found your videos; I'll watch every one of them. The terror in my life for the last few years is catastrophic fire. I've got adrenal fatigue from that stress and other things. My late husband and I lived in the middle of the 2017 Thomas Fire in southern California. Global warming and 150 years of suppressed natural fire has left us all with a bomb. My brother and I are in one of the ten most extreme fire danger areas in Oregon. Preparation to the best of my ability is the first comfort I have. We have a limited income, love our home and 15 acres. We've thinned out most of our woods, done a lot of mowing, and have cut down most of the fire ladders. Luckily we're both fit, mostly in good health, and do it all ourselves. I've spoken to all our neighbors, and we're all ready to help each other if we can. Our buildings need significant changes for more fire-resistance, but our funds won't pay for everything at once. Year by year I'm praying we'll be spared one more season while we get a little more fire-resistant. I've prepared my evacuation items; I've videoed our property for the insurance company. Four years of yoga and meditation help. I'm on supplements to heal my adrenals. I get some comfort too from practicing stoicism, and take dance classes for fun. All I can do now is surrender to whatever happens. I won't be able to save much, but I'm ready to let go and drive out. It's a Chinese (I think?) saying: "Barn's burned down. Now I can see the moon." It's a peculiar, comforting mantra.

[ausramarcinkeviciute]

My psychologist told me to do these experiments but I really didn't understand the way she explained it. Thanks so much for your video, it's a lot clearer now! I feel more able to start

[JoeJoe-vmsi]

I am probably going to repeat something you said in a different way: I find that releasing one's demands for results is huge. If the only way to be happy in an situation is to have my expectations met, an unreasonable burden exists. Hence, if X is the only acceptable result, and Y is the actual result, I have lost control, failed, and can slide off the edge. Billy Joel had sage advice "leave a tender moment alone".

[deeproots]

Day one ticked off! Your explanation of intolerable of uncertainty made me really take stock of my triggers/bad habits for worrying consciously and subconsciously. Tried your exercise and can't explain how much joy ot have me when I reviewed the situation after and realised I had nothing to worry about. Tonight's job is to start a journal as I have seen.lots of suggestions as it helps process our thoughts. Would.love to hear your opinion on keeping journals as a tool to help anxiety

[Hend]

Thanks a lot
I hope to learn ACT in your simple amazing way

[robert-wrob]

Hello Dr. Thank you for your helpful videos. I had a bad panic attack at my old job a year ago, since then I have basically what is agoraphobia and GAD, its hell. However the past month I have been pushing myself through exposure and powering through, its stilly but got dizzy today at the post office but powered through. In the end it truly is a fear of uncertainty and that next bad panic attack. Have my daughters birthday party tomorrow and will head in and power through once again and quite sure I will be alive afterwards once again. Many thanks.

[takkadi]

Yes sir . Quality info and practical strategies thank you !

[rybo]

I suffer with GAD and have intrusive thoughts OCD and was told I have a lot of intolerance of uncertainty which comes from assumptions on social media. These are really helpful when my anxiety plays up. Thank you so much

[matiasparedes]

I'm currently doing my PhD in decision making under deep uncertainty. You can find similarities among these approaches and some concepts you used in this- and previous- video, even though they came from a totally different field. Thank you very much, you explain very well.

[kmuree]

THANK YOU, that's what you left out in your popular lecture of generalized anxiety, because you explained what it is but you didn't tell us how to overcome it, that's why I suggested you do a video about it when you asked for suggestions.