When does negative visualisation become catastrophising?

Meditations 2.1 anticipates difficult people so action can remain cooperative; useful rehearsal must end in preparation, not endless threat.

Say to yourself at daybreak: I shall meet a meddler, an ingrate, an insolent man, a deceiver, an envious man, and an unsociable man.Meditations, Book 2.1

The direct answer: rehearsal produces action; rumination produces more fear

Book 2.1 anticipates ordinary friction and recalls cooperation. Useful rehearsal ends with ‘If this happens, I begin here’; catastrophising keeps asking how much worse it could become.

Bound the exercise

Choose one plausible situation and five minutes. Write observable signs, first response and whom to call. ‘If interrupted, I ask to finish’ is preparation; a chain to dismissal and ruin is not.

Correct for probability and capacity

Ask what evidence supports risk and what resources remain. Once preparation exists, return to today's task. More imagining is not more preparation.

Stop when anxiety is being trained

If racing thoughts, insomnia, avoidance or checking increase, ground in external facts and seek support when needed. The passage does not replace an emergency plan.