You may have heard people speak of a “sense of impending doom” in a number of ways.
Should you pay attention to this feeling if you experience it yourself?
What Is a Sense of Impending Doom?
Verywell / Cindy Chung
A sense of impending doom is a feeling of knowing that something life-threatening or tragic is about to occur.
In this way, the phrase would be considered a “symptom.”
It may also describe your opinion about what is happening in the world in some way.
In this case, the phrase might be used as a “prediction.”
This can be useful in many cases but can also lead to mistakes and incorrect predictions.
It is common for people to misattribute the source of their arousal.
For example, you might be more likely to get upset with your partner if you have a headache.
A sense of impending doom is, in many ways, a “micro” delusion.
It is a strongly held belief in an outcome that is quite removed from reality.
This is why anxiety conditions often worsen over time without intervention.
Our bodies respond in many ways to stress without conscious deliberation.
This is why people with seizure conditions may opt to have a seizure-alert service dog.
Another concept somewhat akin to the sense of impending doom that is similarly not well understood is near-death awareness.
Many people have stayed alive due to trusting their instinct and intuition.
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