7 tips to help you feel stronger and calmer in uncertain and challenging times

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In day-to-day life, there are many twists and turns. And while some will be relatively small and you’ll navigate them with ease, others are bigger and can leave you reeling as you try to figure out which way is up, out or forward!

Having a kit of tools that help you feel stronger and calmer in uncertain and challenging times is powerful. Because those tools will help you gain greater clarity about what’s going on and what you need to do, along with the confidence to take action.

Here are seven tips to add to your own resilience toolkit, each one is valuable and powerful, and for you to use now.

Tip 1: Pause and breathe

When you feel worried or scared, you’ll naturally take short, shallow breaths. This type of breathing triggers a stress response and your mind-body will prepare to fight, flight or freeze. By taking longer, deeper breaths, you let your mind-body know that you are safe. Practice that by putting your left hand on your heart and your right hand on your navel. As you breathe in, feel your belly rise and as you breathe out feel it sink back towards your spine. Keep going until you feel calmer.

Tip 2: Acknowledge your thoughts and feelings

Your thoughts and feelings are very real to you so rather than trying to push them aside, acknowledge them. Write down what you’re thinking and feeling in your journal or on a piece of power. If your thoughts are making you feel stressed, anxious or overwhelmed, it’s possible to change them and the first step is writing them down. Here’s a link to a free journaling guide to help you with this: Journaling to help you navigate uncertain and challenging times.

Tip 3: Choose your words with care

Words have an energy about them. Some are uplifting, inspiring and empowering, while others can make you feel helpless, hopeless and stuck. Notice the words you use, even the small words like “can’t”, “don’t”, “won’t and how the statements you use them make you feel. For example, compare “I can’t cope” with “I can take this one step at a time” or “I can do this, it’s just new or unfamiliar”.

Tip 4: Maintain your daily routines

When facing a challenging situation, it’s common for people to forget to do the things that help them feel strong and calm. And it’s not that they intentionally forget about them, it’s just that when we’re stressed, our brain switches to a very reactive survival state. Re-establishing your daily routines will help your mind-body feel stronger and calmer. And that’s going to help you shift from reacting to responding.

Tip 5: Make self-care a priority

You wouldn’t put poor quality fuel into your car or not get your car serviced regularly AND still expect it to run well, would you? It’s the same with you. If you want to be at your best, feeling strong and calm, prioritise your own care. Make sure you’re:

  • Eating well

  • Staying hydrated

  • Sleeping/resting

  • Exercising/moving

  • Staying connected with people who matter to you

Tip 6: Remember what you’re good at

You are smart and capable, and you’ve been through tough stuff before. But when we’re worried or anxious, we can forget what we’re capable of. Write a list of your strengths, skills and qualities, and then ask yourself how you can use them now. And if you’re thinking you don’t have any, pause and breathe. Everyone has strengths, skills and qualities, and that most definitely includes you. Start by writing the ones you know, like you can read (because you’re reading these tips) and you want to help yourself (that’s a quality).

Tip 7: Focus on what you can control

There’s a lot in life we can’t control but there are things we can, and recognising the difference is important. Because trying to ‘sort’ those things outside your control will create even more stress and anxiety. You can’t control the weather, no matter how hard you try. Instead, you could choose what you do and how you dress to reduce the impact the weather has on you. So, thinking about the situation you’re in now, write down your thoughts and identify what you can and can’t control. Then, for what you can control, decide what action you’ll take.