I have heard it all day long; on the news, from my family, my friends, and my clients. They are afraid and they feel their lives are out of control. We are staying away from all the things we used to enjoy in our communities. We aren’t supposed to come within 6 feet of our friends and community members.
My message during this time is to stop. Take a breath. It is easy to fall into the patterns of feeling out of control. Everything in our lives has changed; our jobs, where we do them. Our kids, how much we see them and how we educate them. Things are very different than they were 7 days ago and we have not been able to make any of those decisions.
The thing I tell all of my clients is … The only thing you can control is you. We cannot control things outside of us.
Once we accept this truth we are left then with the power to choose our thoughts, be mindful of our behavior and examine our emotions. The way to stop the free fall is to stabilize you.
Once you are no longer tumbling, you can choose what you grab on to, focus on and stabilize with. You can choose whether you give in to thoughts of despair or look for something to be grateful for. You can choose to reach out to someone with love via phone or message or video chat, instead of hoarding toilet paper. You can choose to believe that we are resilient and will adapt because we have demonstrated that ability in the past.
We can do this. I believe in us. I believe in each and every one of you and US.