Intrusive or worry thoughts, also known as worry thoughts, happen to nearly everyone at some point, but can take a toll on your well-being when they feel especially real or overwhelming.
If you’ve ever found yourself mentally spiraling with “what if” scenarios or harsh self-criticism, there are six simple but powerful phrases that can help bring you back to the present moment with more clarity and calm.
I’ve gathered these six phrases into a free download that you can print out, so that you can refer back to this tool whenever you are struggling with intrusive or worry thoughts.
By using these phrases consistently over time, you can develop a therapeutic skill called “cognitive defusion.” With practice, this technique helps you observe your thoughts, rather than getting tangled up in them.
What Are Intrusive Thoughts?
Intrusive thoughts often show up out of nowhere. They’re the thoughts that make you feel uncomfortable, scared, or anxious—even if nothing bad is happening in your life. Worry thoughts, on the other hand, are the ones that repeat over and over again in your mind. They’re often about things that might happen in the future.
Both types of thoughts can make you feel stuck, emotionally drained, and disconnected from the present moment.
Why These Phrases Work
What makes the 6 Phrases to Help with Intrusive or Worry Thoughts so powerful is how they shift your relationship to your thoughts.
Instead of asking “How do I stop this thought?” you begin to ask “How do I want to respond to this thought?”
That small shift is where real change begins.
With time, you can learn that:
- Thoughts are not facts.
- Worrying does not equal problem-solving.
- You can notice a thought and still choose a different action.
These insights build a skill called psychological flexibility, which is the foundation of many evidence-based approaches to mental health.
Here are the 6 Phrases to Help with Intrusive or Worry Thoughts
This free, downloadable resource gives you a different way to respond to difficult mental moments. Rather than fighting your thoughts, you’ll learn to notice them, acknowledge them, and gently shift your attention back to what matters most in your life.
Here are the six phrases from the resource, along with how each one can help:
- “Hello mind, I’m noticing that you’re worrying me again. We’ll see what happens.”
The key word here is “noticing.” When you are noticing your thoughts, you don’t need to believe them or act on them or even respond to them. Viewing your thoughts from the outside also automatically distances you from your thoughts.
- “If I believe this thought, how will it help me?”
This phrase invites you to pause and reflect. Is this thought helping you, or pulling you further away from the life you want to live? This phrase can also invite you to consider if there is a different belief that will help you more.
- “Name the story.”
In therapy, we sometimes use the word “story” to describe a recurring anxiety or insecurity we have. Give your repetitive thought a label—like “the failure story” or “the catastrophe story.” Naming the thought helps you see it for what it is: just another recurring mental habit, and not a fact.
- “Maybe my mind is right, maybe not… who knows?”
Saying this phrase brings lightness and flexibility. Your mind isn’t a fortune teller—and it could easily be wrong.
- “There you go again, mind. You sure are good at worrying.”
It’s easy to feel like frightening thoughts are based in reality. This playful observation helps create distance between you and your mind’s habits. You don’t have to believe everything your brain tells you.
- “Thank you, mind. You’re doing a good job worrying me today. We’ll see what happens.”
Sometimes, a little bit of worry helps us. You can think of your mind as trying to be “too helpful” when you worry a lot. That way, you recognize why your mind is doing what it is, and then you can move forward.
Each phrase is short, easy to remember, and designed to be used in real-life moments when worry or intrusive thoughts feel overwhelming. You don’t have to wait until you feel calm—these phrases are tools for the chaos, not just after it.
Print out your free download to remember these 6 phrases
These 6 phrases are most effective when you can remember and repeat them with ease. I’ve created a simple visual prompt of these phrases that you can print and hang up somewhere easy to see, like a mirror or beside your bed. With these phrases close to hand, you can go over them whenever intrusive or worry thoughts come calling.
Whether you’re new to these concepts or already working on your anxiety, the 6 Phrases to Help with Intrusive or Worry Thoughts resource offers a gentle and effective place to begin.
