6 things therapists do to stay calm when everything feels uncertain
Uncertainty is a natural part of life, but it is easy to feel completely overwhelmed when many unknowns arrive at the same time, as at the moment. Prices are added and subtracted by the time, causing wild oscillations in the world economy that could potentially cost you a ton of money. The stock market is tanking, and a ton of people who had jobs that seemed stable are now dismissed. In addition, you have everything that happens in your personal life to manage in addition to worrying about an imminent economic crisis.
It is easy to look around and assume that everyone sails very well when you feel like you are keeping it together. But the reality is that everyone feels warmth when life is unstable, even therapists. “This presents itself in almost all therapy sessions lately, and something that I have done in my daily life right now,” said Hillary Ammon, Psyd, clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety and the Emotional Welfare of Women.
You mainly have two options when life is in the air: hide on your sofa and claim that nothing wrong, or find new ways to work in uncertainty. It goes without saying, but the first is not Really An option – and ultimately, the only outcome has passed. If that does not feel like this ability to navigate instability naturally comes to you, it does not matter. “We must all learn to live with uncertainty, but that does not mean it’s easy,” explains Thea Gallagher, Psyd, Associate Professor Clinical at Nyu Langone Health and Cohost of the The mind in sight.
In that spirit, we have tried to find the things that therapists do when uncertainty strikes. From the writing of sticky notes to reflection on the “anchors” of life, here is what they swear.
They focus on what they can control
When the air is thick of uncertainty, it is easy to assume that the result will be horrible – and it can quickly make you a little obsessive. “The uncertainties that cause concern tend to” stick “, explains Dr. Ammon. Hello, crushing anxiety!
Whenever she notices that she is not able to shake easily, Dr. Ammon says she will stop first and recognize her first. “Then I sit with it for a moment. I try not to repel thoughts or feelings, ”she says. This gives him mental freedom to think about what bothers her in relation to trying to ignore him-which can ultimately put him in mind even more, she explains. Dr. Ammon then finds it useful to focus his attention on what is under her control and to solve the problems of things she really has the ability to change. It can even help go further and make a real list of what worries you and the aspects you can control in order to know what to focus on.
