thought patterns Anxious thinking means frequently flooded by repetitive and intrusive thoughts You wish you could turn your mind off but the catastrophic or worried thoughts just keep coming Feeling mentally on edge in turn fuels anxious feelings and avoidance behaviors For example imagine receiving an invitation to a birthday party You might immediately think something like one is going to talk to me if I go feel awkward If you have that thought often enough or just believe it enough you might end up skipping the party even though you like your friend and want to miss out Or if you do go to the party your anxious thinking might nag at you the whole time making it an ordeal instead of the fun experience it should be The strategies in this section will help you challenge the kinds of anxious thoughts that interfere with your quality of life The key thing I hope this chapter teaches you is that you believe everything you think explore why our thoughts often need to be challenged and learn specific strategies that can be used to do just that CH APTER EIGHT Thoughts vs Reality Believe Everything You Think You your resilience