# What are Your Mantras to Get You Through Anxiety, Panic, Stress, Despair and/or Impending Doom? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 19, 2020, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150 "2020-02-19T04:30:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/41 "2020-02-21T06:37:27Z")
You can survive anything for four weeks (left over from medical school and residency when each rotation was four weeks) ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/42 "2020-02-21T10:12:53Z")
My mantra consists of an ostentatious shrug and “F\*\*\* it. I don’t care.” ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/43 "2020-02-21T19:57:00Z")
Hassle is always finite. No matter how bad things seem, they could always be worse (and probably are). When the going gets tough, fuck this shit, I’m outta here. - not always applicable I agree that mantras alone are not enough to see most people through stressful times. IMO, they need to be paired with reality-based perspectives and solid preparation for worst case scenarios (one of the dangers here being inadequate imagination to conceive of the actual worst case). Given that how one imagines the future rarely plays out in reality, there is an excellent chance of avoiding worst case scenarios if one can successfully imagine them happening. And in the odd event they do happen, one will be prepared to face them. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/44 "2020-02-21T20:03:22Z")
Hassle is always finite. No matter how bad things seem, they could always be worse (and probably are). When the going gets tough, fuck this shit, I’m outta here. - not always applicable. I agree that mantras alone are not enough for most people to get through stressful times. IMO, they need to be paired with reality-based perspectives and solid-as-possible preparation for worst case scenarios (one of the dangers here being inadequate imagination to conceive of the actual worst case). Given that how one imagines the future rarely plays out in reality, there is an excellent chance of avoiding worst case scenarios by imagining them happening; and in the odd event they do happen, one is then prepared to face them. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/45 "2020-02-21T20:05:50Z")
This was a dupe. ETA: Sorry for the triplication. I totally regret trying to post on this site today. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/46 "2020-02-21T20:25:51Z")
That’s OK - many mantras are repeatable. Regards, Shodan PS - my mantra is currently “eventually these doggone 504 errors will end”. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/47 "2020-02-21T21:30:52Z")
This too shall pass. Things will look better in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/48 "2020-02-22T02:23:19Z")
There are three magic words, but the incantation must be made in your doctor’s office: “I need Valium!” (or the equivalent – there are more modern alternatives – ask your doctor’s advice but do some research on your own) Alternatively, depending on the situation: “I need Prozac!” (or the equivalent – there are more modern alternatives – ask your doctor’s advice but do some research on your own) No, I’m not joking. There are many lifestyle changes that can be very helpful, including keeping busy, exercising, eating well and keeping healthy. But I’m a great believer in pharmaceutical assistance when necessary. As I may have said elsewhere, the fact that many of these drugs are over-prescribed in lieu of proper treatment like therapy is a different issue. They have their uses in the short to medium term. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/49 "2020-02-22T02:25:01Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > PS - my mantra is currently “eventually these doggone 504 errors will end”. They will be replaced by “502 - Bad Gateway” errors. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/50 "2020-02-22T02:36:09Z")
I do believe in spooks. I do believe in spooks. I do, I do, I do believe in spooks. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/51 "2020-02-22T02:47:45Z")
To quote the great philosopher Bill Murray, [It Just Doesn’t Matter](https://youtu.be/e9mf3Bypyk8?t=56) ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/52 "2020-02-22T03:58:12Z")
Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB Don’t go away SDMB ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/53 "2020-02-22T04:59:06Z")
You Dopers know how to deliver. These are some keepers, but I can’t believe we’re 52 replies in and there hasn’t been a single ‘Let it Be’. But please keep them coming. I fear that trouble lies ahead, so I need an arsenal. ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/54 "2020-02-22T05:29:16Z")
This too shall pass, I will endure, I will overcome. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2020, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/55 "2020-02-22T05:31:35Z")
1. \*\*There’s light at the end of the tunnel \*\* I’ve used this one when biking up VERY high hills (Indiana is not mountainous, but wow, does it have hills), but it also got me through basic training; my son’s newborn weeks; and a surgical scenario that was painful, but had an excellent prognosis. 2. **I’ve been through worse** It’s not my mother’s death or my father’s death; it’s not the time my car was totaled, and I had a sprained ankle (crutches) and a concussion while dealing with the insurance companies; it’s not the time a guy I was dating (way back in 1989) got a call from the Red Cross saying test of his donation was “ambiguous,” and he should go to county health nursing for an HIV test ASAP. He tested negative there, and again at 3 & 6 months, we had always used a condom, and I got tested at the 6 month mark and was negative, but wow, was waiting the two weeks for that first test was horrible; it’s also not my son’s very complicated c-section delivery with an APGAR of 1, which followed a 27 hr. labor. 1. **Make your peace with it** This is for highly unpleasant things that cannot be avoided, like colonoscopies, root canals, and the like. Make the damned appointment, and get it over with. It also was what got me through “group projects” with assigned groups in college. 1. \*\*I can always kill myself \*\* When I have had things that looked like they were going onto my list of examples of “I’ve been through worse,” and none of the others worked, I had this. If it ever got to be too much to handle, really and truly, I always had this out. I’ve obviously never used it, and it probably seems counterintuitive, but the very fact that I don’t have to live through this disaster if I really, really don’t want to, would get me through it. The idea that continuing to put one foot in front of the other was a _choice_, not something forced onto me, actually gives me comfort and the strength to go on. I was really, really broke for a while in the mid-1990s, for almost two years. I had to let my parents pay to fix my car once, and lend me money for my utilities another time, and I borrowed money from my synagogue’s “rabbi’s discretionary fund” twice, and this mantra got me through that time. ---
**Author:** ![mjmlabs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mjmlabs/32/69_2.png) [@mjmlabs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmlabs)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2020, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/56 "2020-02-23T01:58:31Z")
“ **Don’t mean nothin’–not a thing. Don’t mean nothin’–not a thing. Don’t mean nothin’–not a thing. Don’t mean nothin’–not a thing. …** ” Yeah, stole it from Doc in _Hamburger Hill_. Still works. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2020, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/57 "2020-02-23T03:28:02Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Let’s get this bullshit over with. > [@snowthx](#): > > “Well, it’s not gonna go away.” > [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > This too shall pass, I will endure, I will overcome. …and several similar entries evoke this memory. For many years I had a very dear (platonic) friend who had an amazing ability to make people feel better about things. She had a “regular” job teaching Music in a college, and happened to also manage and live in a Zen retreat. Couple of dozen members. One morning I was whining about a particularly horrible domestic crisis, but bravely declared “…but it’ll be okay, I’ll get through this.” And she said… “Yes, you’ll get through it. But right now, you have to be _in_ it.” Yep. ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2020, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/58 "2020-02-23T04:32:05Z")
-“Dude, you’re not _that_ important!” Works against most conspiracy theories, including the Illuminati, Space Lizards and God, whenever you have a hangover or your mind is otherwise compromised. Well, at least it works for _me_! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2020, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/59 "2020-02-24T10:59:45Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Owaa tagoo samai > > I just say it over and over and over until I calm down. > > Try it! Good one, Oscar! mmm Although I believe his version was Owa Tagoo Siam ---
**Author:** ![Anita\_Dayoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Anita\_Dayoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anita_Dayoff)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2020, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150/60 "2020-02-24T14:39:09Z")
Start slowly and repeat, a bit faster each time - Owa Tajer Khayam [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-mantras-to-get-you-through-anxiety-panic-stress-despair-and-or-impending-doom/848150.md?page=4)