the future

Does anyone else constantly think of where they will be in 10 years? 20 years? 50 years etc etc? Not a day goes by that I'm not thinking of this; what kind of job I'll have, if I'll be married, have kids you know stuff like that.

Complete opposite of this I also think of what it would be like to live in the past. Like if they had a time machine I think I'd want to live in either the 1940's or 1980's. I don't know why. Maybe its because I know what will happen in the future and I can prepare for it? I don't know. All I know is I hate living in the present which is what we should focus on but I just can't seem to. Anyone else relate?? :?

Totally. I think its because most of us SA's are so results driven. We want a good job, good friends etc but its the process and the now that is real. So i'm constantly thinking about in 10 years or 50 years picturing everything being ok but forgetting the process and what i have to do to get there. I'm also, as you say, always thinking it would be better to live back in the older days with not so many worries and everything. I think this is maybe a common trend amongst us.

Yes I do.....but I try not to as much as possible.

I think of the future often, but I don't think too far ahead like 10 or 50 years. I'm more concerned about my short term future...being 24 years old right now, I want to achieve my goals before I hit 30. Meaning I want to have a wife or a soul mate, a degree and a good job. Most importantly I hope by that time I will have conquered my social anxiety and be happy. Is this asking too much ?

I constantly think about the future but I only look forward about 2 years max. It is difficult to look ahead 50 years, obviously things will be different when I'm 72!

I just think about finishing uni next year and starting a professional job. Other than that the I have goals that are more like dreams eg marriage, very good job, nice place to live etc.

I think about the future all the time but no more than about 10 years down the track. I think im too optimistic about my future, i certainly know i was at age 20 thinking i'd be where I want to be at 25. Im 25 now and man was i wrong about that! Not that optimism is a bad thing but i think to have any preconcieved notions about your ideal future life makes getting there less likely. Too bad thinking about it such a hard habit to break out of.

I can't really picture my future at all. The furthest I can plan or imagine is 1 year ahead.

I always think about my future, but I cannot predict what it will be and I certainly don't plan it. All I can really say is that my future looks to be pretty bad... I can't imagine how bad though.

I also think about the past and wonder how in the world I got into the dismal state of failure that I am now in.

There are also times when I think about going into the past. I alway wished that I could live in a time where I could survive based off of myself rather than various organizations putting check marks in boxes and reviewing files.

Hmm I used to get so worried about the future. But now I think about the future less than I used to. And even then its about 1 or two years ahead not 10 years etc. Partly because _this is the future_ that I was thinking about 10 years ago. I have had SP for just over 10 years. Sure I have improved, but not to the extent that I hoped for. I can hold a job.. but just barely. I can endure some social situations ... like being at the pub.. for relatively short periods of time... yet there are so many other things that I haven't improved. So many things I thought I would have improved, but I haven't.

I don't want to think about think about the future.. especially life in 10 years... If I am anything like this, I don't want to be. I am sure I will cope to at least survive... but in my mind at least I would have lost all hope of leading a normal life. Thats too depressing to think about.

I don't think it will help anyone to make unrealistic goals and then attaching to an age you will achieve it by. Like tool1919 said above its more important to think about the process of how to achieve it rather than thinking about deadlines.

As for living in the past or future... well thats another whole post... in short I would prefer to be born in the future.

-SS

When you think about the future do you worry about it or fantasise about it? I think if you worry about it this may be a symptom of GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) which is sometimes coupled with SA.

I use to worry about the future constantly. Even having obsessive thoughts about it. Now I improved to an extent. I try to take one day at a time and enjoy the present. Instead of being a constant worrier.

from time to time I'm thinking about what will be in the next few years.
The future is not predictable and that scares me.
Especially I'm worried about my job. Upto now it gives me the necessary anchor in my life.