Word-Of-the-Week #1077: Angst
April 10, 2025 by Susan Clarke
Angst – a feeling of anxiety or apprehension.
How well do you handle the feeling of uncertainty? Do you imagine the worst-case scenario?
This week features excerpts from “Why Uncertainty Makes Us So Anxious, and How to Deal With It,” by Kathleen Doheny.
“Uncertainty is all around us. Layoffs loom; recession is possible. Will bird flu spread? Is your cough just a cold or something worse?
Uncertainty can leave you worried, scared, and angry. And that’s natural. It’s also stressful, but experts say you can learn to deal with all the what-ifs and reduce that stress.
Fear of the unknown underlies anxiety, psychologists say. Our brain views uncertainty as danger since there’s no way to know what’s coming up. “Our ancestors needed to be cautious about being in unpredictable situations in order to stay safe,” said Jacqueline K. Gollan, PhD, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. “But in today’s world, this response can be overwhelming as we face all types of uncertainty.”
Gollan tells anxious patients: “The anxiety response isn’t a sign of something wrong with you. It’s actually your brain acting like it’s supposed to.” The key, she said, is “learning to work with the natural responses rather than fighting them.’’
We can’t eliminate uncertainty, but we can build our capacity to deal with it. Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City, calls it “building that muscle of tolerating uncertainty.”
To build your tolerance: Learn what you can control, calmly assess risk, and avoid imagining worst-case scenarios.
- What’s Your Reaction to Uncertainty?
Some people can tolerate uncertainty better than others, Gollan said. Mental health providers have a scale to measure that.
According to some research, the more uncertainty you’re faced with, the higher the stress. In one often-quoted study, participants who were told they had a 50% chance of getting an electric shock were the most stressed, while those who were told they had either a zero chance or a 100% chance were the least stressed.
Gallagher has observed two unhelpful reactions from patients who aren’t tolerant of uncertainty: Some avoid situations where there is uncertainty; others become hypervigilant.
A parent concerned about the possibility of a school shooting, for instance, might seek certainty that it won’t happen at her child’s school. One approach would be to pull the child out of school and home-school. Another would be to be hypervigilant, asking about protocols and trying to control the possibility — which isn’t entirely possible.
“We want some predictability and control,” Gallagher said. “We are trying to make meaning of our world. But that’s not how a lot of life works.”
- Know What You Can’t Control
It’s crucial to let go of what Gallagher calls the “illusion of control.” A patient worried about contracting the norovirus, for instance, might obsessively wash his hands, avoid social gatherings, bleach down the walls at home, and avoid restaurants. What happens? “Your world gets smaller, your anxiety gets bigger,” said Gallagher. And you may contract the highly contagious virus anyway.
One option: Shift your mindset, reasoning that if the sickness happens, you will handle it the best you can, she said. “When you start to avoid [situations], you actually teach your brain you can’t handle things and you feel worse.”
- Staying in the Present
“The problem with tending to uncertainty is that it typically brings us into the future,” Gallagher said. “Being in the present is such a good antidote to our anxiety. If you find you are only predicting negative outcomes, ask: ‘What could go right?”
The practice of mindfulness is one strategy to stay “in the moment,” experts agree. Practicing it can be as simple as taking a walk without looking at your phone, but rather noticing the breeze and scenery, Gallagher said.
It might help to recall past uncertain situations that you handled, Gallagher said. Whenever uncertainty feels overwhelming, think back to those situations, she advised: “It’s important to remind ourselves of our capability to handle things.”
This week’s focus is on overcoming angst. Do you suffer from the “illusion of control?” How often do you allow yourself to just focus and be in the present? How would it feel to build that muscle of tolerating uncertainty?
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