Adjusting to the Unknown By Madison Alvarez & Lamar Whidbee
What does the future hold in regard to your graduation, college, or career? Are you going to be in a classroom tomorrow or an online environment, working from home, or in the office? The future is overwhelming enough without the additional impact of the global pandemic.
These unknowns can bring upon feelings of isolation, anxiety and depression. Finding ways to cope with the continuous revolving doors of sudden or surprising beginnings, endings, or changes is key to maintaining an overall sense of well-being.
We all have different stressors and unknowns, but we can find common ground in how to approach our wellness. Here are discussed strategies to cope with the unknown of the unknowns we are all battling.
- Be and accept support systems: Taking into consideration we are all individuals with different stressors and battles, it is important to keep in mind that we don’t always know what those around us are struggling with. We can find support in each other by asking for help or accepting it when others provide it.
- Practice mindfulness: Slow down, live in the moment by trying to intentionally bring an open, accepting and discerning attention to everything you do. Find acceptance of yourself, treat yourself the way you would treat a good friend; when it seems difficult to slow down or accept yourself, focus on your breathing to find peace in the rhythm.
- Find your gratitude: Being grateful means to acknowledge the good in one’s life. This can include accepting and reflecting on the bad that has happened, maybe that includes the overwhelming unknown, but represents a contrast of the good to create gratefulness. This can be explored through practicing mindfulness and surrounding yourself with loved ones to practice gratitude.
A gratitude journal is another way to explore and establish one’s gratitude by expressing daily what is good in one’s life. Some express one thing they have seen that has been good, one thing that has made them smile, someone that they were thankful for that day.
There is no wrong way to support others, be mindful, or practice gratitude if wellness is being addressed and achieved. Each of these exercises will likely look and mean something different to every person but are beneficial to all. There are many more ways to cope and adjust to the unknown than we could possibly fit in one page but starting the journey to explore which expression fits your individual needs is a great place to start!
Resources for gratitude and mindfulness:
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