What a few weeks this has been. Millions around the world are in a state of fear and uncertainty. Fear, of course is a natural reaction, especially to a global crisis.
It was early March, and I was functioning as usual. Kids at school, going to work, grocery shopping as needed, cleaning with environmentally-friendly products. On March 13th, I felt a little stressed going to the grocery store as my kids told me I was “panic shopping.” Fast forward just one week and I was acutely aware of simply walking out of my house and feeling some degree of fear.
How do I go to the store without exposing myself to the Corona virus?
Will there be many people at the store?
Do I bag my own things?
Will this be the last time I can freely leave my house for a while?
Will I get sick unknowingly and transfer the virus?
This absolutely manifested physically, my heart rate up, jumpiness activated. This dramatic emotional shift in one short week was well, mind blowing.
All of you, I imagine, have felt the same thing in one form or another, and are experiencing varying levels of stress, ranging from mild worry to moderate stress to panic attacks, racing thoughts, being wide eyed in the middle of the night. Friday the 13th, (I am not suspicious, but this really did seem like the day things changed) I was checking the news every few minutes, thinking a lot about going to the store, and had insomnia. I woke up Saturday and told myself that I must refocus to get through this sanely. I saw no other choice.
Right now, amidst this collective adversity and vulnerability, we have an opportunity to shift perspective away from the fear.
So, what can we do in times of such extreme uncertainty?
The secret behind everything when there’s so much fear and uncertainty is to focus on doing the little things you can control.
You’re already seeing lots of tips in your inbox about how to work from home, stay safe and healthy. I’m not talking about that here, because what I do with people is help shift perspective and thought patterns.
4 ways to shift perspective to greatly affect how you feel:
Breathe. Inhale 5 long breaths. Inhale for count of 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4. Yep, it is that simple.
Focus on your body: Focus on the energy in your body. Bring your attention to your feet, contract and release. Do this head to toe. Notice where you are holding your stress because emotional stress will show up physically. You can have a full meditation practice in place, but you don’t need to. Just pause what you are doing for a few minutes, put your attention on your body, and relax where you feel the stress.
Focus on your actions: What are your red flags? Are you snappy, overeating, over-drinking, checking the news constantly? You don’t need to judge yourself, just be aware of what is and what is not serving you right now?
Focus on your thoughts: You can not control every one of the more than 60 thousand thoughts you have daily, but you can control where you choose to focus. When you become aware of giving certain thoughts your attention or your energy, like a worry about the future, you get to choose to shift your perspective, and either find another place to park your mind - call it distraction, I call it being empowered - or go to breathing and focusing on your body for a few moments. There are so many ways to cope with the state of the world right now, but with my clients, creating success from the inside out is my approach so I look at mindset. I’ve seen over many years with thousands of clients that we have the ability in any given moment to change our emotional state of mind and create a new perspective which serves us well. Dig deep and find the strength and courage that is within you. Challenge yourself to do one of the exercises about daily for one week.
There are so many ways to cope with the state of the world right now, but with my clients, creating success from the inside out is my approach so I look at mindset. I’ve seen over many years with thousands of clients that we have the ability in any given moment to change our emotional state of mind and create a new perspective which serves us well.
Dig deep and find the strength and courage that is within you.
Challenge yourself to do one of the exercises about daily for one week.
Take another step and turn fear, stress and anxiety around.
A special offer for an unusual time
I am on telehealth and offering sessions for folks at a distance as well as locally. It’s easy, no worries about getting support and social distancing, we can connect from the comfort of your home.
If you or someone you know wants to get back on track or have wellness maintenance, please shoot me an email coachellielane@gmail.com I’ll give you more information.
My offer:
15 min. phone session to assess your needs. No charge.
A short personality profile giving valuable information about how you’re likely to respond and what you need most in this time of uncertainty and change. No charge.
1-2 meetings to begin to get you back on trick given your unique needs. 20% discount.
I look forward to helping you through this period of time. We will get through this together.
Take very good care of yourself, and keep loving, growing, and giving.
Ellie Lane