Tips to deal with anxious times
The global pandemic has had a major effect on our lives. Many of us are dealing with situations that could be extremely stressful, emotional, and overwhelming not only for adults but also for children. The lockdown and the rules of social distancing not only keep us away from the virus but also keep us away from our loved ones, which in some cases makes us feel lonely, abandoned, and isolated which is the primary cause of stress and anxiety. This phase of the pandemic is very stressful for most of the people and hence, is extremely concerning and a solution to this must be found to keep our mental anxiety away. Learning how to adapt to pressure in a sound manner will make you, individuals you care about, and everyone around you become stronger.
Fear, anger, stress, worry, change in appetite and energy, difficulty in making decisions, sleepless nights, physical tiredness, health and mental health problems are few of the things that mental stress can cause to us. It is normal to feel pressure, grief, tension, anguish, and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The following tips by Life coach Ashna Dhanuka can help you and your loved ones manage stress.
1. Positivity is the key
Keeping a positive mindset is the only way of getting through the difficult times, but it’s an important part. Positively not only puts us in the best position possible to cope with these difficult times, but helps us become a better person in the process.
There are 2 basic mindsets to deal with uncertain times like this. One is the hopeful kind, the ones who remain positive and see the light at the end of the tunnel and the others are the ones who believe to be the victim of these circumstances and don’t stop worrying and crying over these helpless and uncontrollable times.
All of us have bad days, where we feel sad, worried and sometimes even shed a tear but being a positive person is when you know how to pick up those pieces and move forward. To get through the pandemic all of us need to have a positive mindset and know that all of us are in this together and going to come out of this even stronger.
2. Practice Gratitude
Expressing gratitude is more than courtesy, manners, or being polite. It's about showing your heartfelt appreciation for all things good in life, instead of focusing on the negative.
There are 2 ways of practicing gratitude, one is to write down everything you are grateful for and the second is the thinking of a person each day you are the most grateful for and write a note about how you feel. The difficult time you’re going through will start to seem less significant when it’s compared to everything you’re grateful for in life.
3. Keep the Learnings and throw away the tension
When you find yourself in middle of a stressful situation, pick everything apart and see what went wrong and what you could’ve done differently. Always end up learning something that will helps you get a clear picture of what needs to be done to not end up in the situation again. Or if you do find yourself in a similar situation, you know what to do to minimize the difficulty of the situation. It's simpler overcoming a troublesome time whenever you know its odds happening again are probably nothing.
4. Avoid planning
The biggest learning from this pandemic is to stop planning our futures as life is highly unpredictable and never works according to our planning. The fact that we think everything is under our control and we can plan it all is wrong. We should all know that situations are beyond your control and no matter what you do, you can’t change a thing. We build frustration concentrating on things outside of our control.
You should instead focus on the things that are within your control because that’s the only way you can make a change that’s actually going to help you. Make a list of everything you can control about the situation and divert all of your focus towards those things. Anything that’s not on the list, doesn’t get any attention.
5. Be kind to yourself
You need to really focus on yourself to endure difficult times. Go for a stroll through the recreation centre, lift a few loads, read a nice book. It doesn't make any difference what you do, simply would something that gets your care and body connected with at a more significant level than floundering in self-centeredness.
6. Know that you’ve come a long way
At times we get so centered around the street ahead, that we never think back to perceive what we've effectively journeyed. Give yourself kudos for all that you've effectively done. You’ll give yourself a confidence boost when you realize that you’ve already made so much progress and the light at the end of the tunnel will get brighter.
“Worrying doesn’t empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strengths”
About the Author -
Ashna Dhanuka is a Life coach and motivational speaker
