Joe was intelligent and confident, and enjoyed the respect and approval of others. When he had time to prepare a presentation weeks in advance, he dwelt on the things he may do incorrectly or go wrong, like omitting important information or having an anxiety attack in front of the audience, and he would experience stress in his stomach just thinking about it. His body was feeling anxiety - anticipation of a negative emotion in the future, and began to produce the stress chemical, adrenalin.

I explained to Joe that he was not having anxiety about giving the presentation, but was fearful of experiencing anxiety during the presentation. He had a fear of the fear, which is a phobia. I urged Joe to stay in the present tense as he prepared for his presentation. When he felt his stress level rising, he should concentrate on his body sensations, recognising them as the adrenalin build up in his body. By focusing his thoughts in the present Joe could stop his mind thinking future thoughts, which is enough for the body to begin to discharge some of the adrenalin build up.

When we anticipate having fear of something it will cause us stress - negative emotion felt in the body. The more we think about having the anxiety, the worse it gets - because our body is producing more and more of the stress chemical (adrenalin). When we do something spontaneously, there is no time to anticipate things going wrong. If something did go wrong, we would be quick enough and spontaneous enough to cover up or laugh about it, with no build up of stress. Most of us handle things well in the present tense! Adrenalin eases out of the body when there is no more fear or anticipation of fear. Keep your thoughts in the present tense to settle anxious feelings.