“Despite its bad reputation, worrying is not always destructive or useless: in addition to motivating us, it serves as an emotional shield, ” said Kate Sweeny, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Riverside who just published an article on this issue in the specialized journal Social and Personality Psychology Compass .
After carefully studying this feeling, Sweeny has proven its decisive role in recovering after experiencing a traumatic event or suffering from depression , to plan and adapt to new circumstances and in the adoption of healthy and preventive behaviors . It is logical: if you worry about the risk of contracting skin cancer, you will wear sunscreen when you go to the beach.
But the North American psychologist threads finer: according to the data she has collected, women who worry moderately are those who have more mammograms to prevent the appearance of breast cancer. “It seems that both carelessness and excessive fear can hamper motivation, while the right dose of concern motivates us without paralyzing us, ” argues the expert.
Even if we can’t prevent the worst from happening, that uneasiness serves as preparation for setbacks, because it forces us to think of a plan B. In addition, the pessimistic view – the “worryitis”, so to speak – serves to rejoice us even more if there is good news in the end. Compared to the state of worry, any other feeling is pleasant.
“Extreme levels of concern are bad for health, and I am not trying to promote them. What I offer is comfort to those who are hopelessly worried: preventive action and planning are not bad things . Worrying about the right is better than not doing it not at all, “concludes Sweeny.
Photo: University of California at Riverside.
