By Spence M. Finlayson
Unless you have been living under rock, you will know by now the saga of the Coronavirus which is raging globally. This is totally unprecedented and it takes some getting use to by making major adjustments in our personal and professional lives.
Life is not the way it is supposed to be, it is the way it is. The way we cope with it, is what makes the difference. Sometimes the best thing you can do is nothing, wonder, not obsess. Just breathe and have faith that everything will turn out for the best.
This Coronavirus is wreaking havoc; deaths, illness, layoffs, etc. You see we have good days, bad days, overwhelming days, too tired days, I am awesome days, I can’t go on days and every day you still show up for life.
Here are some coping statements for dealing with anxiety:
- I’m going to be alright. My feelings are not always rational
- Anxiety is not dangerous, it’s just uncomfortable
- Right now I have feelings I don’t like. They will be over with soon and I’ll be fine
- That picture (image) in my head is not a healthy or rational picture
- I’ve stopped my negative thoughts before and I am going to do it again now.
- It’s not the first time I feel anxiety. I am going to take some deep breaths and keep going
With this Coronavirus and its subsequent fall out, you must not be consumed with watching it all day on the news. Take a break and watch something else. Go in your garden, Take a nap.
Kristen Butler says ‘The strongest people I have met have not been given an easier life. They have learned to create strength and happiness from dark places.”
Josh Shipp says “You either get better or you get better. Its that simple. You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to take you down. The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.”
So as we stay home and take all the necessary precautions regarding this virus, let us remember that ‘this too shall pass. “I refuse to entertain negativity. Life is too big and time is too short to get caught up in empty drama.
One of life’s best coping mechanisms is to know the difference between an inconvenience and a problem. Robert Fulghum
Finally, T. Borrey Brazelton said “A family’s responses to crisis or a new situation mirror those of a child. That is to say, the way a small child deals with a new challenge (for instance, learning to walk) has certain predictable stages, regression, anxiety, mastery, new energy, growth and feedback for future achievement. These stages can also be seen in adults coping with new life events, whether positive or negative”.
