Addressing Chronic, Unproductive habits

If you suffer depression or anxiety here's an idea for dealing with chronic, unproductive habits that aggravate psychological symptoms.  Suppose you were intending to write an instruction manual whose purpose it was to assure that your symptom or complaint would either be provoked or aggravated.  What methods do you use to arouse a symptom or perpetuate it.  For example, if you were someone given to anxiety perhaps your list might look something like this:

• Whenever possible, think about things that are far off in the future about which you can do nothing.
• When something good happens begin thinking about how it could turn sour.
• When something frightens you, avoid it, even if it is important.
• Convince yourself that everyone is paying attention to how anxious you appear.
• Consider that at any moment others might discover that you are really a fraud.
• Remind yourself often of occasions when things went badly.
• When things are bad, tell yourself that things could be worse.
• etc

Try to compile your list of phrases in generic terns by looking for the general theme of what you do that makes you more anxious.  This exercise is a gentler way of addressing your chronic complaint.