To anticipate with great apprehension or fear. Yikes! This is what I have been doing. No wonder I feel less joyful sometimes. It is really no surprise when I look at it this way.
Anticipation is not a bad thing in itself. It can be great if it is something you are looking forward to. However, if there is something you are not excited, maybe scared, or even annoyed, then dread can creep in.
The concern with this is that dread can rob you of your joy long before the event or thing even happens. Anticipating the dreadful thing can be stressful. So, what can you do?
Honestly, I’m still working on this one. Being in the present moment is a good place to start though. Another possibility is that maybe the dreadful thing won’t be that bad after all. Lastly, if none of that rings true and it’s dreadful because it’s dreadful, what can you do right now, this moment to have some peace? Me, it’s prayer, meditation, and laughter.
Dread is not entirely avoidable. I’m definitely in the early phase of dread recovery. However, I intend to work on anticipating something good happening instead of expecting the worse even when history has proven otherwise. And to top it off I’m not a fan of labeling things negatively so time to get to work on reframing and changing my focus.
The Perfecting Project 