Just one more chaotic uncertainty to drive you crazy?
I lived through the 60s, the feminist revolution, the rallies against the ongoing Vietnam War and the worries about nuclear build-up. That was 60 years ago. Those national pressing concerns felt awful then as does our international, global fears about the pandemic and the outbreak of a widespread war feels now. Russia, under Putin’s rule, is aggressively invading Ukraine in the hopes of establishing a new Russian order. Putin’s threats of using nuclear weapons has heightened fears and anxieties about the immediate future.
What Has Changed Since Then?
of course the first thing that comes to mind is the Internet and the globalization of quick person to person connections. Every bump in the noisy news world can go viral at any moment, bad news grabs our attention more than good news. There are so many news outlets we are all exposed to, OF COURSE we are over stimulated, over whelmed and over crazed. We can usually bear up under one crisis at a time. Now they are piggybacking; the burden is heavy.
Awareness of our personal reactions are to global stress is the first step in dealing with it. As Eckhart Tolle believes, as do I, if awareness of reality is avoided it becomes, in the end, more powerful and renders us more helpless to act in our own best interests. The goal is to become aware, accept the reality of uncertainty, live in the present moment (keep asking yourself if there is anything to fear in the present moment you are living RIGHT NOW) and believe that we all are capable of resilience growing out of adversity and challenging times.
The steps I’ve outlined pave the way for us to SHIELD JOY. In other words, help us find the energy to shift into engagement in activities that facilitates connection to ourselves, to others;
Step 1, if you love music make time to listen, play and even learn an instrument.
Step 2, If you love to move make sure you exercise or keep moving every day.
Step 3, If you can’t think of anything you want to do find VOLUNTEER WORK. Joy, satisfaction and positive connection are the best antidotes for our current burdens of uncertainty.
And don’t for a second think you are alone. Reach out and check in with friends and the larger community and open yourself to the possibility of support and a sense of belonging.
Remember the SERENITY PRAYER:
God, grant me the Serenity
To accept the things I cannot change…
Courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference
Maggie Baker, Ph. D.,
Psychologist, Author and Financial Therapist