We've all done it: You know, that thing where you proactively fill in the unknowns when faced with uncomfortable uncertainty. My partner Stephanie and I have taken to calling that phenomenon Anxiety Mad Libs.
Like the beloved 80's fill-in-the-blank story game, people tend to leap ahead and fill in the blanks to create a false sense of certainty. But the only thing they've created is more anxiety about what they think could happen. And if you're anything like us, your story is a thrill-ride chock full of worst-case scenarios.
When you add the holidays into the mix, the anxiety mad libs get really wild. That's not to say you don't have legit reasons to be anxious: We acknowledge that your Uncle Larry makes sexist jokes at Thanksgiving and that your mother-in-law totally has a personality disorder, probably.๐ Stephanie and I are not here to argue! We're here to help.
To help, we invite you to go completely over the top while you create your very own (Non) Official Holiday Anxiety Mad Lib. While it's just for fun, we hope it will help you step away from your real-life mental mad libs and become more conscious of when you're filling in the blanks and creating your own anxiety narrative.
Let's Play!
Copy and fill out the Mad Lib story template below. Swap in your own words at the various prompts to generate a hi-larious story of holiday hijinx. Bonus points if you and a friend do it together—you can take turns asking each other the prompts.
Please, please post your Anxiety Mad Lib in the comments because lord knows, we all need a snort-laugh.
A VERY ANXIOUS HOLIDAY MAD LIB
It’s (holiday), and you’re preparing for (plural noun) to arrive at your (place). You’re most worried about your (adjective) (relative) showing up with (food or drink), but you know they’ll also bring their (adjective) opinions on (controversial topic).
Just as you’re setting out the (food item), someone rings the doorbell. It’s your (adjective) (noun)! They greet you with a big hug and a comment about your (body part). Meanwhile, (relative’s name) is already on the couch, sharing stories about the time they (past tense verb) in (place) — for the third year in a row.
Dinner goes smoothly until someone brings up (topic) and suddenly, everyone has an opinion. Your (relative) chimes in, insisting (famous person) is (adjective), while your (another relative) starts quoting (self-help book title).
As the evening winds down, you start to wonder if they even noticed the (adjective) (household object) you used to decorate. Just as you’re thinking about (action), your (relative) hugs you, says “Happy holidays,” and leaves you with one last piece of advice: “Never (verb) a (noun)!”
Hey!
