Our ability to make decisions effectively and confidently helps us navigate our daily lives. However, when we struggle with indecision, this can lead to stress, anxiety, and fear regarding potential negative consequences.
Indecision is often associated with a fear of uncertainty. This fear is very common and can cause us to spend an excessive amount of time trying to determine the possible outcomes of the choices we make. While this can be beneficial in moderation, indecision is a concern when it leaves us feeling overwhelmed even with trivial decision-making, experiencing anxiety during this process, or avoiding it all together.
If you are someone who experiences difficulties with decision-making, perhaps you have found yourself thinking:
“I spend way too much time on simple decisions.”
“I get anxious when I have to make a choice.”
“I much prefer someone else to make decisions for me.”
“I feel pressure to always make the ‘right’ decision.”
“I don’t make decisions unless I am 100% sure of the outcome.”
It is common to experience these kinds of thoughts when we are dealing with indecision. In many cases, a fear of making the wrong decision (e.g. one with adverse consequences) can lead us to decision-paralysis in which we excessively ruminate over possible choices and outcomes. This rumination often consists of irrational thoughts related to our potential decisions (e.g. “if I choose the wrong job, my career might be ruined forever”) and does little to help us select a plan of action.
How Can Therapy Help with Indecision?
At Connect Cognitive Therapy, we recognize that dealing with persistent indecision can be very disheartening and can lead us to feel like we lack control over our lives. We are here to help.
Therapy helps individuals cultivate key decision-making skills rooted in trusting one’s intuition and engaging in rational thinking regarding outcomes. Therapy also teaches us acceptance of emotions such as panic and fear as natural parts of the decision-making process and provides us with strategies to navigate them.
What We Do
Our registered therapists use a kind, inviting, and evidence-based approach to guide you to stronger decision making by helping you:
- Analyze irrational thoughts and fears regarding decision-making and providing evidence against them
- Practice focusing on the current information regarding a decision instead of the unknowns
- Engage in rational consideration of pros and cons based on the known information.
- Fostering acceptance that not all decisions work out as we intend and instilling confidence to navigate these outcomes accordingly
- Creating tailored and achievable action plans and schedules to facilitate decision making and information gathering
- And much more!
Take the Next Step Towards Better Decision-Making
If you or someone you know have been struggling with decision-making, we invite you to reach out to us to learn more and schedule a consultation!