Worry postponement is a practical intervention for clients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), designed to manage excessive worry by postponing daily worries and scheduling specific 'worry time'.
Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
An editable Microsoft PowerPoint version of the resource.
Worry Postponement offers a structured approach to help clients differentiate between real event worries and hypothetical worries. By designating time specifically for worrying clients are provided with an opportunity to test the belief that their worry is uncontrollable.
Originally introduced by Borkovec et al., (1983) as a 'stimulus control' task, worry postponement has been shown to significantly reduce daily worry. Clients often report that worries often lose their urgency or relevance when revisited, and this technique can challenge beliefs about the uncontrollability of worry.
Worry Postponement is a valuable tool for treating GAD:
Excessive worry and anxiety concerning various aspects of life.
Significant stress and worry impacting daily functioning.
Anxiety disorder where worry is a key feature.
Help clients to understand the distinction between 'real event' and 'hypothetical' worries.
Decide on a specific 'worry time' each day.
Encourage the client to delay engaging with hypothetical worries until this designated period.
Encourage clients to reflect on the relevance and intensity of their worries over time.
Worry postponement is a structured cognitive-behavioral technique that helps clients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) develop a different relationship with their worry. Originally introduced by Borkovec et al., (1983) as part of a stimulus control framework, the intervention involves scheduling a daily 'worry time' and deliberately deferring engagement with worries until that time. This technique is rooted in behavioral principles, with the goal of weakening the habitual link between worry cues and immediate cognitive engagement.
Clients with GAD often report that worry feels uncontrollable and urgent, and they may hold positive beliefs about its function — for example, that worrying prepares them for the worst or prevents bad outcomes. Worry postponement helps disrupt this cycle by introducing delay and containment. Clients learn that many of their worries — especially hypothetical ones — lose their emotional intensity or relevance when revisited later. Over time, this can challenge the belief that worry is either helpful or uncontrollable.
Worry postponement can be used in different ways. First, it may be introduced as a practical early intervention in GAD treatment, helping clients observe worry patterns and begin gaining a sense of control (Leahy, Holland, & McGinn, 2012). Second, it can be framed as a behavioral experiment, as described by Wells (2004), in which clients test their metacognitive beliefs about the uncontrollability of worry. In this approach, clients gather experiential evidence about their ability to defer worry without negative consequences.
