How to Stay Grounded in Times of Crisis & Anxiety

It can be very difficult to find your inner calm and stay grounded in times of crisis or when anxiety strikes.

Do you ever feel like this?

Often it can be hard to learn how to manage all the thoughts and overwhelming feelings of fear that can put our lives into a tailspin.

But there is help.

I’m naturally a worrier and as a Holistic Life Coach, I’ve learned to consciously be aware of the power of our thoughts and their impact over our lives – both positively and negatively.

These thoughts can either empower us or they can cripple us with fear and worry.

So much so, that if we dwell on the negatives, our lives can be stalled.

Negativity is a killer, for anyone, especially those with anxiety or particularly if you’re burned out.

Have you heard of the term – ‘A self-fulfilling prophecy?’

When we think things like – “I can’t do this” or ‘I’m not good enough” – or you focus on feeling scared or worried, these limiting beliefs and thoughts can block you and often hold you to ransom.

Don’t worry… as humans all of our thoughts can be predominantly negative.

It’s quite normal to have these negative thoughts and feelings.

You become what you think!

But, if you allow the negativity to turn your thoughts into crippling fears that keep you stuck in a state of fear, that is NOT healthy.

So what do you do?

It’s a matter of being INTENTIONAL about changing your mindset.

This is especially hard at a time of crisis – like now. I really do understand how you feel!

Just the worry of the unknown can be enough to have a tight grip over you and plunge you into a deep hole of inaction.

But consider this –

‘Whether you think you CAN or you think you CAN’T……you’re right!‘

Henry Ford

The power is in how you think.

So, you CAN change your thinking.

You can CHANGE your brain to adopt new thought patterns, to help you overcome these negative thoughts, a bit like training a muscle – with PRACTICE and REPETITON.

So, at this unprecedented era AND as a way to help you stay grounded in this time of crisis to keep you moving forward, practical activities are needed to TRAIN your brains to take charge of your thoughts.

The following grounding strategeies will guide you to feel more connected to the present and help to bring you out of this distressing situation.

They will also assist you to adjust to the big changes that are happening around us.

Take heart, my friend. Help is here.

Tips to find your inner calm and stay grounded in a crisis

1. Stay Positive

It’s easy to say, but how do you stay positive in a crisis?

Because this is something everyone tells you to do and it can be much easier said than done, in truly difficult times when you’re feeling anxious.

Well…there are many things that you can do to help change your mindset.

• Use affirmations – saying positive affirmations out loud is a practical strategy to help rewire the negative self-talk or worrying thoughts you may be having. Firstly, to get started, use statements that you WILL believe. Saying things like – I’m worried about the state of the world, but I have control over what I think – is far better than ‘there’s nothing to worry about’ …because it’s more believable. If you write down these reframing sentences and use them when negativity strikes, it will help change your old thinking. Note: Be aware that this strategy is easy, but it will practise everyday, just like learning anything new. But take heart – if you continue to repeat these over and over you’ll feel much better.
• Read uplifting material – There are so many great books out there that will help keep you focussed on the positives and motivate you. If you’re interested in self-help or improving your personal development – great! – it will also help. Book ideas could be: ‘Rags to Riches’ stories or triumphs over adversity. Also, here are some positive blog posts I’m sure you’ll love: Mindful Mornings: Bring on a Calmer Teaching Day and The Best Inspirational Quotes for Teachers
• Listen to positive podcasts – I love listening to podcasts to learn and stay motivated. Some good ones I’m enjoying are – Doing It Scared, The Happiness Lab and Self-Care for Teachers.
• Watch ‘Success-Stories’ – Netflix, Stan (in Australia) or Amazon Prime are perfect platforms to find some positive viewing if you’re stuck at home. I watched a new mini-series recently on Netflix called – “Self-Made” – which is about the first woman in the early 1900s in America in, who become a millionaire. It narrates her rise to success, building her empire of Hair Salons and beauty products, through some very difficult personal circumstances. I loved it!
• Talk to up-lifting friends and/or family – I know this can be difficult at this time because many are struggling with the current events. But, do your best to find these types of people in your life. I know I gain HUGE support through positive connections I’m building in Facebook groups– wherever there are communities of like-minded people who want to focus on the good things and not dwell on the negatives.
• Humour – finding a way to add humour into your day can make all the difference if you’re feeling low, anxious or worried. Choose memes, comedies or just finding the fun and laughter in life is what you need.

Related Articles:

• How You Can Improve Teacher Happiness in Difficult Times
• 19 Positive Affirmations You Need to Start Now!
• 11 Humorous Teacher Lockdown Memes (You have to Laugh at!)
• 15 Funny Teacher Memes (Only Teachers Will Get)

2. Limit negative input

Limiting negative messages is one area that I’ve had to intentionally make a change, to stay grounded in times of crisis. The way I limit my negative input is by:

• Limit news broadcasts – it can be helpful to stay informed, but I choose to update myself with these reports only once every few days (as time goes on, not so much anymore). You’ll find that if you bombard yourself with all the media updates, it can cause undue anxiety. (I’m sure others will tell you anything urgent you need to know!)
• Limit Social Media – if you have a propensity to scroll mindlessly through your Social Media feeds, this can be detrimental to you too. Many posts out there are really negative and can cause unnecessary worry. So try and limit these -You’ll feel much better for it.
• Limit Negative People – it’s important that you identify the negativity that comes your way from friends and family. You know the ones I’m talking about! It can be hard to avoid, but here are some suggestions to help – cut-back on your contact with them (even by phone or text), change the topic or subject if it turns negative, and be totally up front with them and say – “I would rather you stop talking about this topic.” I had to do this with the people around me to protect my mindset.

3. Practice Mind-Body balancing tools

At a time of crisis, it’s totally normal that you may feel anxious and worried.

Using Mind-Body balancing tools can really help you to balance your mind, body and emotions. By balancing the nervous system you allow a quieter pathway between the brain and the body.

This will enable you to be more self-aware of your thinking to help change the negative patterns of thought; acknowledging these and then letting them go.

Each of these tools will help release tension and stress and bring your system back into harmony.

• Deep focussed breathing – deep breathing is very calming. You’ll find that when you’re anxious, breathing can become very short and shallow. This is not helpful, as it will be harder to relax. Learn to slow down your breathing and intentionally take some time to focus on breathing deeply from the belly. This will help slow the mind and body, release tension and promote inner calm (Thonley, 2019). Read here for the learn the steps to implement a breathing routine for stress relief.
• Journaling – self-reflective journaling is a great way to process what’s going through your mind – it might be concerns or worries or ideas you’re having for the future. It might just be junk you want to release and then throw away. Journaling helps to organise your thoughts and separate fact from fiction – helping to isolate your worry and stress and stopping the overwhelm. Related Article: Improve Teacher Wellbeing with Gratitude Journaling
• Mindfulness – this is simply having an awareness of the present and observing the moment exactly as it is, by using all of your senses in a non-judgmental way. When we are conscious and paying attention, we are practising mindfulness. This simple practice can help you to change your perspective, mind and mood towards life, stress and everything around you (Thonley, 2019). Recognise the feelings, consider them and then let this feeling pass, without judgement.

Related Articles:

• 6 Easy Ways to Bring Mindfulness into the Classroom
• Mindfulness for Teachers: 9 Easy Activities to Stay Calm in a Stressful Job

4. Stick to a daily routine

When you’re stuck at home for what can seem like a neverending amount of time, make sure to have a regular routine that you follow each day. This will keep you grounded and give you some normalcy in your life.

Here are some ideas for a daily routine to get you started:

• Get up and make your bed
• get dressed straight away
• put on your makeup
• have a plan for the day – not just ‘Netflixing’ on the couch, but actually tasks you want to complete.

If you already have your regular morning and evening routine, keep following these even when you get stuck at home and might be feeling a bit anxious.

Your routines will help your focus your mindset on the positive and what YOU have power over, even if there is uncertainty all around you.

Related Articles:

• 7 Super Easy Ways to Simplify Your Teaching Life
• 10 Easy Working at Home Tips to Save Your Sanity (Great for Busy Women)

5. Practice stress management to overcome anxiety and overwhelm

Here are some easy ways to reduce your stress and help with any anxiety and overwhelm you might be feeling.

Try some of these calming and uplifting activities:

• Move your Body – I love going for a walk in the fresh air and sunshine (even if it is just around my garden). It helps keep my mind clear, lifts my mood and gives me the wonderful benefits from moving my body and staying in shape. If you’re new to walking and need help to start read here. Think of some other ways you can move your body.
• Dance to your favourite upbeat music – music and dancing are well- known for lifting our spirits and making us feel good. Add it regularly for an instant mood enhancer.
• Drink a calming cup of tea – reap the benefits of a soothing and fragrant herbal hot tea – Chamomile for calming, Peppermint for a bit of pep-(it’s also known to calm upset stomachs).
• Start some Mindfulness activities – read here for some easy ideas to implement mindfulness and help change your perspective.
• Have a big belly laugh – I love watching comedies or reading funny memes to cheer myself up and laugh out loud. Take a look at this post to make you chuckle. Also, who doesn’t love a quirky cat video clip to make you smile?
• Hug someone you love – add a one minute hug and feel the wonderful benefits of the feel-good hormones. If you are alone, science tells us that cuddling a beloved furry friend has the same stress-relieving benefits.

Related Articles:

• Why is it So Important For Teachers to De-Stress?
• A Straight-Forward Tip How to Relieve Teacher Stress (You Won’t Believe)

The bottom line to stay grounded in times of crisis

My friend, I hope these suggestions for staying grounded will help keep you more positive to get you through this difficult time.

I know I will be regularly using these things in my life to focus on what I personally have control over and stay calmer in the face of crisis.

Good luck and stay well.

Michelle

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