Future Tense audiobook cover - Why Anxiety Is Good for You (Even Though It Feels Bad)

Future Tense

Why Anxiety Is Good for You (Even Though It Feels Bad)

Tracy Dennis-Tiwary

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Categories:
Health & NutritionPsychology

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Key Takeaways from Future Tense

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Future Tense
Redefining Anxiety+
Coping Mechanisms+
Building Resilience in Youth+
Channeling Anxiety into Purpose+
Excellencism over Perfectionism+

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Question 1 of 8
According to the book, what is the primary factor that transforms normal anxiety into an anxiety disorder?
  • A. Experiencing intense physical symptoms like a pounding heartbeat.
  • B. Using avoidance and poor coping mechanisms that cause functional impairment.
  • C. Having anxious thoughts that last for more than a few hours.
  • D. Failing to take medication when anxiety symptoms first appear.
Question 2 of 8
What was the key takeaway from the Harvard study that utilized the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)?
  • A. People with social anxiety are unable to perform well under pressure regardless of preparation.
  • B. Suppressing anxious thoughts before a stressful event leads to a calmer physical state.
  • C. Changing your belief to view anxiety as a helpful bodily response actually improves physiological reactions.
  • D. Watching videos of other people's presentations reduces the fear of public speaking.
Question 3 of 8
How does the author distinguish between 'useful' and 'useless' anxiety?
  • A. Useful anxiety provides actionable information for the present or near future, while useless anxiety occurs when no action can be taken.
  • B. Useful anxiety is entirely psychological, whereas useless anxiety manifests as physical symptoms.
  • C. Useful anxiety is caused by past trauma, while useless anxiety is focused on future events.
  • D. Useful anxiety can be easily ignored, while useless anxiety requires professional medical intervention.
Question 4 of 8
What does the author suggest is the best way to handle 'useless' anxiety?
  • A. Suppress the anxious thoughts and pretend the problem doesn't exist.
  • B. Research worst-case scenarios so you are fully prepared for bad news.
  • C. Step away from the anxiety by immersing yourself in the present moment, such as taking a walk in nature.
  • D. Repeatedly discuss the anxiety with friends until you find a tangible solution.
Question 5 of 8
According to the cited 2018 study, what was the effect of giving trigger warnings to readers before they read disturbing content?
  • A. They helped readers emotionally prepare and reduced their overall distress.
  • B. They reported greater increases in anxiety, suggesting the warnings may harm emotional resilience.
  • C. They had no measurable effect on the readers' anxiety levels or emotional state.
  • D. They encouraged readers to engage more rationally with challenging viewpoints.
Question 6 of 8
Why does the author advise parents against being a 'snowplow parent'?
  • A. Because parents need to prioritize their own comfort over their children's temporary fears.
  • B. Because removing all obstacles prevents children from developing the ability to respond to difficulties with creativity and effort.
  • C. Because it encourages children to develop obsessive-compulsive behaviors to cope with stress.
  • D. Because children naturally grow out of their anxiety disorders without any parental intervention.
Question 7 of 8
How does the author recommend using the 'self-affirmation' technique to help channel anxiety toward your purpose?
  • A. By repeating positive mantras in the mirror every morning to build self-esteem.
  • B. By writing down all of your fears and systematically proving them wrong.
  • C. By identifying and writing about the core values and domains that make you feel good about yourself.
  • D. By setting a grandiose, long-term vision for the future and ignoring short-term setbacks.
Question 8 of 8
What is 'excellencism' as described in the final summary of the book?
  • A. Setting high standards but being forgiving of yourself when you make mistakes, treating them as learning experiences.
  • B. Demanding flawless execution in all tasks to prevent anxiety from taking root.
  • C. Lowering your expectations so that you are never disappointed by the outcome.
  • D. Competing with others to ensure your work is always the best in your peer group.

Future Tense — Full Chapter Overview

Future Tense Summary & Overview

Future Tense (2022) puts to rest a huge and socially pervasive myth about anxiety: that it’s bad and should be avoided at all costs. Today, anxiety is considered an illness – something that should be treated with medicine or coped with in some other way. But that isn’t the case. Ultimately, anxiety is simply information, and it’s incredibly important for our survival. It’s up to us to make the best use of it.

Who Should Listen to Future Tense?

  • Anyone intimately familiar with anxiety
  • Parents worried about their children’s emotional lives
  • Psychology fans

About the Author: Tracy Dennis-Tiwary

Dr. Tracy Dennis-Tiwary is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Hunter College –⁠ CUNY, where she directs the Emotion Regulation Lab and the Center for Health Technology. She also cofounded the digital therapeutics company Wise Therapeutics. Her scientific articles have been published in over a hundred peer-reviewed journals, and her work has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and many other publications.

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