Adapticus Journal • Inner Systems
Anxiety, Agency, and the Future Self
Anxious minds are often highly simulated minds. The question is what we do with all those simulations.
2025-11-09•8 min read
Anxiety is, in part, a side effect of having a powerful imagination.
You run futures in your head. Most of them go badly. Your nervous system responds as if they were already real.
Homo Adapticus does not try to stop imagining. Instead, they learn to steer their simulations:
- Notice which futures you rehearse most often.
- Ask which ones are actually under your influence.
- Invest adaptation energy where your leverage is real.