How to Stay Sane in Times of Uncertainty

The unfortunate events unfolding in Eastern Europe will not leave the world unchanged. Experts voice their different opinions about the possible end of the crisis, but regardless of that, ordinary people like you and us are in a state of uncertainty, where you don’t know what will happen tomorrow, when it’s difficult to get to work and it’s generally not clear how to keep the same pace of life.

If you find yourself in a similar situation and can’t figure out how to act, here are several simple tips from the Collabio team to help you keep your mind straight and get back on track asap:

1. Take Back Control of What You Can:

1. Sleep. No matter how difficult it is to fall asleep, try to stick to the common daily schedule. Lack of sleep during just one week will result in being exhausted for even more days.
2. Food. When you are nervous, the body spends more energy than usual, and this resource needs to be replenished. If you can’t eat a full meal due to stress, eat smaller meals more often during the day.
3. Physical activity. Taking physical exercises, doing sports or even small warm-ups will help to distract from problems and keep your body healthy and full of energy.

2. Take Care of Someone

When we take care of someone, be it a pet or other people — relatives or strangers — we will feel stronger and better. You will have new goals that you will achieve, see the results of your actions, their benefits for others, which means that you will not have a feeling of devastation, uselessness.

3. Communicate With Loved Ones

Communication helps shift the focus from obsessive thoughts to something else. Maybe things aren’t as bad as they seem, and you just don’t see the other side of the situation. So, even a brief talk with others will allow you to look at any issue from different angles and share emotions.

This is especially important for those who have relatives or friends in the territories occupied by war. Keep in touch with loved ones and find out if everything is okay with them. Agree to write to them every two or three hours to be aware that they are safe.

4. Take Time Out from Difficult Decisions

It happens that it is simply impossible to focus on business and it is much more effective not to work at all than to waste time in the inability to do something. In such cases, it is better to pause, take a day off and try to completely escape from the reality that bothers you. It can be computer games, movies, TV shows, books, anything that will allow you to get distracted and take a deep break.

5. Limit Scrolling News to 2–3 Times a Day

The more alarming and disturbing news we read, the more excitement settles in our heads, taking any chance to analyse the situation mindfully. So, it is worth limiting your stay in the media space and checking the feed several times a day, optimally 2–3. Allocate the same time for doing that and stick to the schedule.

6. Finally, Get Back to Work

After you feel that you are close to having recovered to your normal state, try to get to work. Of course, this requires more cognitive effort. Nevertheless, once you get into the flow, you will take your mind off the problems and feel that you are doing something important, useful, which will raise motivation and reduce stress level. At least you will be focused on something else than on what makes you sad or nervous.

Several Extra Tips to Do

Be here and now. Don’t think of what could be done differently, base your decisions on the current situations and change your plans accordingly. Be realistic and look for the best decision here and now.

1. Adjust to reality. Agree with the idea that some situations can’t be influenced and the only thing you can do is adjust to them.
2. List positive things that happen around. To not get absorbed by negative events, create a note where you’ll write good things, even minor ones.
3. Remember that everything has its end. No matter how hard the current situation is, it will end eventually. Focus on your daily routine and wait until everything changes for the better.

Whatever bad happens in your life, we believe that you can withstand it. Let’s believe in the good and try to do our best to live our lives to the fullest in any case!