Future Tense summary

The Trier Social Stress Test, or TSST, is a famous research task used to assess and measure the effects of social anxiety. In it, you – the participant – are asked to prepare a short presentation and then deliver it in front of a panel of judges. Your performance, you’re told, will also be videotaped and then compared to other people’s presentations. 

While the judges watch you, they repeatedly frown and shake their heads. Next, you’re asked to perform a tricky math problem in front of the same panel of judges. You must count backward from 1,999 by 13, out loud, as fast as you can. Every time you pause, the judges tell you that you’re counting too slowly and that you need to speed up. When you make a mistake, you’re told that you were incorrect and that you must begin again from 1,999.

On the surface, anxiety seems to have a lot in common with fear. But there are a few important differences.

Imagine reaching into a box in your attic, like the author did one day, and feeling something furry and alive. You immediately snatch your hand back, your heart racing and your mind alert. You look inside the box and see that it’s a harmless little mouse. You close the box, bring it downstairs, and release the mouse outside. Your heart rate slows back down, and you’re calm again. You’ve responded to the danger and alleviated the fear, which is a reflexive, automatic response. 

Ever seen a trigger warning appear at the beginning of a movie, television show, or book? This is a short content warning that informs viewers that the images, ideas, or words contained in a work may be distressing to some people. 

Trigger warnings have existed for years, particularly within online communities. However, more recently, the use of trigger warnings in the classroom has led to a heated debate. Some professors argue that trigger warnings provide students the chance to mentally prepare themselves to encounter a distressing topic. Other professors say that actually, trigger warnings encourage students to avoid uncomfortable ideas, which makes them less able to engage rationally with views they find challenging.

Anxiety is the main driver of obsessive-compulsive disorders. People who experience these disorders repeatedly engage in certain behaviors, like hand-washing, checking lights, or seeking reassurance from other people. These behaviors provide temporary relief for feelings of anxiety. But the anxiety always returns, and then the compulsions must be performed again. The cycle repeats because compulsions don’t actually solve a problem or help a person grow. In other words, they are not purposeful.

Yet anxiety itself is purposeful. It’s connected to the circuitry in our brains that’s responsible for seeking rewards and feeling the pleasure of attaining them. Therefore, anxiety isn’t just about avoiding disaster. It’s also about achieving satisfaction and delight.