The Stoic philosopher here identifies something subtler than mere worry—he's pointing out that our suffering often comes not from the problem itself but from the *narrative we build around it*. A modest medical test becomes a death sentence in our minds before results arrive; a work deadline transforms into proof of our incompetence. What makes this different from the tired notion "don't worry" is that Epictetus isn't denying real problems exist; he's showing us where our actual torment originates. When you notice yourself spiraling about a conversation you had yesterday, you're almost always wrestling with invented details and imagined judgments, not the bare fact of what was said.