The past couple of weeks I have come to realise that I have been waking up with a jolt and wondering why. That was until a few days ago when I came to realise that the reason behind this, is the fear of the unknown. This COVID-19 pandemic has put us all in a spin, overturning our fairly flawless lives. We hope and pray everything will end soon and we’ll be able to put it behind us and only think of it as a ‘bad nightmare’. Let’s face it – we’ve all caught ourselves wondering what is really going to happen. Will this thing end? What will happen if I get it? What if a loved one gets it, then what? And the questions go on and on. But this is where you need to halt and tell yourself ENOUGH! Hyping yourself up does no good. In fact, it does much more harm than you think. In today’s post I want to voice out some tips that help me in times like these. Tips that will help you embrace and accept anxiety and not fight it.
People have a hard time acknowledging they experience anxiety and that’s because many, fear they will be labelled as weak, useless or even irrational. This is something I have never done simply because I never felt ashamed of admitting to it! Yes, I have an anxiety disorder and even though at the beginning I didn’t know what was happening I have come to the conclusion that I need to rationalise it and find ways to live with it rather than fight it.
ACCEPT IT BUT DON’T FOCUS ON IT
When you find yourself feeling anxious about something don’t try to supress it. Recognise it and then work on finding the good things that can come out of this. Instead of pondering on all the ‘What ifs…’ try direct your focus on all the ‘Yeah buts…’!
WRITE THEM DOWN
Sit in a quite place and write down in a column every thought that is going through your mind during this time however irrational or crazy you might think it is. Then in another column try to justify that thought. For example, “What if I fall ill with COVID-19 and…?” To challenge that write down “Yeah but what if don’t get it, then I will…”. Writing things down helps you realise your objectives much easier.
CHANNEL IT AND DON’T FUEL IT
Instead of constantly worrying about the pandemic try to figure out what you can learn from it. I’ve been reading a lot of articles on how scientists from all over the world are all trying collectively to fight COVID-19. The key word here is collectively. I know this might sound foolish to some but I like to channel my anxiety to the positive outcomes of this pandemic. It’s been a very long time since we stopped thinking as a whole but instead acted individualistically. So maybe this unfortunate situation will awake empathy and consideration. We are all coming together, one way or another trying to resolve a problem so let’s remind ourselves we are all connected.
CHERRY-PICK YOUR SOURCES OF INFO
When you are a fretful person, the media can distress you much more than it can enlighten you. At the moment there are frightful headlines which do more harm than good. My advice is to choose a couple of credible sources and only check them once or twice a day. After that as difficult as it may be stir away from them and make an effort to live your life without being hooked on the media. It lessens the anxious spiral. I’m not saying cut yourself off from the rest of the world and live in your own bubble, but choose cautiously where you’re getting your information from.
Let’s come together and fight this pandemic. Let’s support eachother and stand by eachother and when all this is over I assure you, you will be a better person and you will realise that YOU are in charge of your thoughts and not the other way round!
Till next week… #stayhome #keepsafe
