I’ve raved about the Worry Wise Kids website on here (a few times, at least) and I often make the recommendation to families of anxious children (whom find it a helpful resource). So, without question, I wanted to attend a workshop put on by some of the same professionals involved in the creation of the site (and affiliated with The Children’s and Adult Center for OCD and Anxiety). Again, I traveled to suburban Philadelphia to learn from some of the best. They looked at the topic of uncertainty and how it applies across the spectrum of anxiety disorders. We all face uncertainty – it’s inherent in both the big and small makings of our lives. Nothing is guaranteed and there’s no way to secure certainty. This you know, but it’s striking to really think how often we are asked (or forced) to tolerate uncertainty. You have a big day at work, but need to call out because your child wakes up sick. You want to talk with the other parents from the school – may go well, may not. About to have a baby, start a new job, take a trip, cook a new food — how will it go? how will it end? Even with the most educated guess, there’s no way to know for sure, you must tolerate uncertainty in order to freely (and without great anxiety) move through life. Here’s the thing that struck me, the thing that made my trip to Philly so worth it:  the goal isn’t to just tolerate uncertainty, but to embrace it.  To embrace – as in to accept willingly and excitedly –  uncertainty — well that’s an ambitious and awesome goal! With that as the goal, Anxiety doesn’t have a leg to stand on.