11/03/2025
When you’re afraid that your symptoms might get worse, your brain interprets this fear as a signal of danger. So what starts off as a dull ache might skyrocket into a flare with fear alone.
Fear (because it is a type of threat) activates the fight-or-flight response, which can both heighten your awareness of physical sensations and amplify the symptoms you’re experiencing.
This heightened state of threat detection, fear and anxiety can create a very common vicious cycle. The more you fear your symptoms, the more your brain stays in a state of high alert, and the more likely it is that you’ll notice and focus on any changes in your symptoms. This focus can inadvertently reinforce the brain’s belief that there’s a threat which perpetuates the cycle.
Breaking this cycle involves shifting your focus from fear the future to acceptance and compassion of the present moment. Meeting exactly what is happening now with gentle reassurance and logical thinking. By acknowledging your symptoms without judgment and reminding yourself that they’re not dangerous, you can help calm your nervous system which in turn, reduces the intensity of the symptoms and the fear associated with them.
It’s about retraining your brain to understand that the symptoms, while awful, are not a sign of impending danger, nor are they a prediction of the future. Over time, this approach can help reduce the fear response and prevent it from becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy, accept what is without the added pressure of “what if it gets worse?”
