Steps To Help Manage Stress amid the Coronavirus Outbreak

As the novel coronavirus outbreak continues to spread globally, stress, fear, and anxiety related to the pandemic are rapidly rising too. Feeling agitated and depressed in such a scenario, where news of misery and death has invaded our life, is quite normal. However, different people react differently to these situations.

Many of us might be feeling helpless, fearful, sad, angry, and overwhelmed during this stressful time. People with existing mental health problems, particularly, are finding it hard to deal with the situation. The World Health Organization, too, has recognized that the pandemic is generating stress, and has requested people to avoid watching, reading, or listening to news that causes feelings of anxiety or distress. 

 

Various mental health professionals have suggested emotion-focused coping strategies to cope with stress during the coronavirus outbreak. This process involves adjusting your feelings and the emotional reaction to the problem rather than tackling the problem itself. Here, we list out a few emotion-focused coping techniques that will enable you to handle excessive stress during this epidemic more effectively. 

 

1. Journaling

Many people still don’t realize the benefits of journaling. Writing down your feelings allows you to control your challenging emotions better. You might be feeling an array of emotions right now – fear, stress, negative thoughts, etc. Dealing with all these feelings in your mind, as you are holed up at home, can be quite overwhelming. Journaling your thoughts honestly can be a great emotional outlet at this point. It will help you to clearly see what you are going through, enable you to achieve some sort of catharsis, and maybe find some solution too.

Try and write every day for about 10-15 minutes. Don’t worry if you feel your thoughts are too messy and complex. Just jot them down and make it a habit. Eventually, you are likely to feel less anxious as you keep pouring your thoughts out. 

 

2. Meditation

Meditation doesn’t only help you get in touch with your emotions it also enables you to attain a certain level of peace and calm if you do it properly. It would hence be perfect for those who are dealing with extra stress in the present situation. Nothing would be better than some peace and calm right now, isn’t it? 

 

One of the most important aspects of meditation is to achieve mindfulness. In simpler words, you have to allow all your thoughts to flow seamlessly and accept them as they are. The vital thing here is to not let even the negative thoughts overwhelm you. A lot of us judge ourselves for the pessimistic and depressing thoughts we have. Through meditation, you will be able to sort all your thoughts and keep panic, fear, and uncertainties at bay. 

 

Meditation is a great stress reliever but it must be practiced regularly. You might find it awkward or futile on your first few tries but stick with it and make it a habit. You will gradually find its benefits and it will be an activity for you to look forward to in these distressing times. 

 

3. Cognitive reframing

Before we respond to a situation in panic and fear, it would be prudent to take a step back and think rationally about the situation. Certain circumstances demand that we try and reframe the way we think or look at something. It might be a nerve-racking event like the ongoing pandemic or something that is a massive challenge. Cognitive framing is a time-honored psychological technique that focuses on shifting the frame through which a person sees certain things. When that frame is shifted, the meaning for those things can change too along with one's thinking and behavior towards it.

Thus, looking at your ongoing stress from another perspective might help you lessen it. You have to learn how to find a silver lining in the current situation. For instance, you might not have been able to spend a lot of time with family because of your work and it was leading to some issues at home. But because of this lockdown, you are now allowed to give plenty of time to family and indulge in doing some activities together at home. 

 

Simply put, you have to minimize the stressors you perceive in your life and hence ease the relaxation process.

4. Positive thinking

This does sound so obvious and clichéd, right? After all, you can’t just snap your fingers and start thinking positively from tomorrow. Well, you might not be an eternal optimist but giving your ongoing stress and challenges a positive spin will certainly help you manage them better. That does not mean, however, that being optimistic will completely solve your problems. However, a positive outlook will most certainly have a beneficial impact on your emotional wellness. 

 

There are many practical ways in which you can add positive thinking to your life. Pay lesser attention to negative thoughts, remind yourself to try again, have some positive self-talk from time to time, recognize your success rather than just failures, and condition yourself to experience random moments of positivity are just some of them. Do remember that while it is important to think positively, you shouldn't go overboard with it either.

These are all easier said than done, of course. But it is still better than giving up altogether. 

 

5. Sharing your feelings

In times like these, we tend to push or bury our negative emotions inside ourselves. However, doing so will cause harm to you in the longer run. Hence, you need to share your feelings with your loved ones. You may think that sharing your feelings with your family or friends about fear of the coronavirus pandemic won’t give you any solutions, so what’s the point? The point is that these negative emotions are gnawing at you and you simply have to let them out. Because if you keep them hidden they will eventually resurface in unhealthy ways. 

 

Communicating your difficulties and talking about your feelings with a trusted loved one might make you realize that they too feel the same way. You may not be able to resolve the situation at present but sharing your common fears and anxieties will certainly feel like a heavy load is being lifted off your chest. Emotional support is very much essential right now for all of us and talking about your feelings with people who understand you will surely make you feel lighter better. 

 

6. Seeking help from a mental health professional

You may fall into a situation where the tension, worry, and anxiety become too much for you to handle. The coronavirus epidemic might be particularly overwhelming for many and can lead to extreme distress and related disorders. When you can’t find any way to improve your situation then it would be better to seek help from a mental health professional. Coping with painful and stressful emotions right now isn’t easy for anyone. If it is getting too much for you, then there is no harm in getting help from a professional. 

 

A trusted mental health professional will guide you in coping with your emotional concerns. They might not be able to offer any solution (if there isn’t any) but they will certainly understand your situation and offer proper and much-needed support.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

7 Positive Thinking Rules That Can Improve Your Life

In times of crisis, there are always people who tell us that we should think positively. This is advice that sounds good and quite logical, but to think positive isn’t always easy or helpful, usually because we simply don’t know how to do so properly. This may seem a little puzzling - how can someone mess up thinking positively? However, after you finish reading this article you’ll understand that there are definitely a few mistakes that can be made, some of which you may have even made in the past...
 
1. Explore yourself
Every time we get upset or sink into depression because of something someone else has told us, we are actually projecting the negativity that lies in our thoughts about it. To change this situation and to adopt truly positive thinking, we must not ignore the little voice in our heads that makes us feel bad, but rather try to understand the reason for it. Just ask yourself why you’re upset and which side of your personality or lifestyle makes these actions or words difficult for you. Once you find the answer, you can tell yourself that now you know the reason for the negativity that surrounds your thoughts, and you can "fight" it with positive thoughts and actions that target the source of the problem.
 
2. Don’t resist negative thoughts
As you may already have understood from the previous section, positive thinking doesn’t always come at the expense of negative thinking, both of which can certainly coexist, however, the positive side should be given greater importance. One of the most important rules that help to do this, and which many do not follow, is that we shouldn’t suppress negative thinking altogether. Whenever there is anger, frustration, or sadness in our lives, we must accept these feelings and understand that they are created as a result of the reaction of our inner selves to the world. These feelings are there, but they do not define us. Just tell yourself in your head: "I'm angry/ frustrated/negative and these feelings are part of me, but they are not me." You are not sad or depressed, you feel sad or depressed - it is a small difference that may seem silly to some, but it has tremendous meaning and it makes it much easier to overcome negative thinking and adopt a better attitude.tips for positivity

3. Remember who you are and be realistic
Like a battery with a positive and negative side and like the eternal cycle of light and darkness in the world, we also have to have positive and negative sides. Positive thinking doesn’t ignore this fact, and therefore, in order to apply it effectively, we must accept ourselves as we are and not try to eliminate significant aspects of our personality. The father of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud put it simply: “Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength.” So, don’t let your positive thinking "run over" who you really are. If for example you want a job promotion, but you know that your professional knowledge is lacking, don’t tell yourself that you’ll definitely get it if you want enough and think positively. Instead, tell yourself that your chances of getting promoted will increase considerably if you spend an hour each day completing gaps in knowledge related to your work.
 
4. Forgive yourself
Positive thinking can’t make you happy if while having positive thoughts about the future you are still angry with yourself because of the past. The problem that many of you may be thinking right now is that forgiving yourself is good advice, but it can be as difficult to implement as positive thinking. To apply it, you can use the principles outlined in the first section of this article and click here to learn about 7 steps that will help you forgive yourself and move forward with your life.

5. Visualize the fulfillment of your positive thoughts
When we are stuck in a negative mood, our imagination always creates terrible scenarios that make us postpone decisions, act hesitantly and feel general misery. In addition, when your mind is filled with imaginary events related to rejection, degradation, disappointment, or sadness, it harms our quality of life and prevents us from moving forward in our lives. We don’t actively try to think about this possible negative future; these thoughts simply appear because of our imagination. To adopt positive thinking, we must harness its mighty power in the opposite direction, and imagine positive scenarios frequently. It is important to remember that just as in the case of imagining negative thoughts, not everything we think about will actually happen in real life, but thanks to this tool we won’t fall into the trap of negative thinking and feel, as a result, stuck in place.
 
6. Use positive reinforcement from yourself and the environment
How many times in the past have you received compliments from other people and treated them with disdain and disbelief? And how many times have you consciously reinforced your positive thinking and trained it just as athletes train their muscles in the gym? If your answers are a lot and a little, respectively, then it's no surprise that you have a hard time enjoying the benefits of positive thinking and harnessing it to improve your quality of life. These two things are closely related to our ability to apply positive thinking in a way that really makes us happier

7. Remember that the journey is more important than the destination
If you want positive thinking to become a real way of life for you, you must remind yourself that it’s not only a tool for achieving goals - it is a way of life. If, for example, you wanted to buy a new apartment, you thought only positive thoughts throughout the search but were still unable to find the right place - you still deserve a pat on the back. You don’t really control the supply of real estate in your area, what other people think, or anything else that isn’t directly related to your inner world. So, if you were really positive during your search and didn’t feel stress, fear or other negative emotions, you were able to implement positive thinking in the best way possible - positive thinking doesn’t really guarantee us success, love, or progress; it only improves our chances and makes our journey towards these goals more pleasant.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement 

How to Change Your Mundane Life in Six Steps

I'm in a slump, feeling stuck in the lowest of moods, afraid that I've got nothing more to offer, waiting for this period of unhappiness to subside. I remind myself to be patient, to keep in mind what past experiences have taught me. Despite this dwindling feeling I currently cannot shake off, I tell myself that that I will be on the upswing soon. Once I wrap my head around this ray of hope, and with a little soul searching, I dig deep into the issues that are contributing to my current state of unhappiness and the things that I could do to overcome it.

Through past experience, I have learnt that though certain circumstances can make my life unhappy. A part of that, and more often than not, a big part, comes from my own thinking, behavior and habits. I have learnt much from these six life-changing habits: 

1. Comparing your life and what you have to others
Comparing what others have in relation to what you have - cars, houses, jobs, clothes, money... can really work a number on your self-esteem, creating a lot of negative feelings.
Change your habit by comparing yourself to yourself. Take a look at how far you've come and how much you have grown and learned along the way. Look at what you've achieved, at what you've managed to overcome and what progress you have made towards your goals. Learn also to be kind to others as well as to yourself, noticing and analyzing your thoughts. If you often judge and criticize people, you'll likely end up being more judgmental and critical towards yourself. 
How it works: By getting into this habit you create gratitude, appreciation and kindness towards yourself and others. You learn to become okay with yourself and with the people around you, as opposed to competing with them. 

2. Finding it hard to let go of a relationship that no longer serves you
Clinging on to someone who treats you poorly can often be a result of your unhappiness. But learning to let go of a relationship that is toxic or has run its course can provide an essential platform for self-growth.
Change your habit by learning to let go and walk away. Broken relationships are always a difficult step to encounter, and once you have made the decision to distance yourself from a friendship or a relationship, there are often a number of hard lessons you will have to learn to overcome. Forgiving the person for wronging you, is perhaps the hardest lesson that you will have to endure, particularly when you are overwhelmed with resentment towards this person.
How it works: Keep in mind that if you allow these negative feelings to persist, you will only be prolonging your suffering. Remember also that forgiveness has more to do with healing the negative feelings within ourselves, than it does with having to accept the wrong-doing of others.

3. Saying 'yes' to other people's requests when you really want to say 'no'
'Yes' is so easily ingrained in our culture. It supports an open-hearted approach to life, it shows kindness and selflessness, whilst the word 'No' is generally frowned upon and perceived badly. But when you are constantly saying 'yes' to things that you don't want to do, or you don't have time for, when you are placing other people's needs before your own, that is when you need to draw the line and pluck up the courage to just say 'no'.
Change your habit by recognizing times and situations where you need not think twice about saying 'no'. For instance, in moments where you feel as though you are wrestling with your conscience, or you are being exploited by others, or perhaps when you have ended up in a situation that is keeping you away from your own goals or responsibilities.
How it works: By saying 'no' to others, you can concentrate on the things that are really important to you.
4. Constantly striving for perfection
When you are constantly seeking happiness through perfection, it's not going to be easy to find. Setting the bar for your performance at a high level will likely lead to low self-esteem and feeling as though you are not good enough.
Change your habit by aiming for good enough instead. This does not give you the excuse to slack off. Rather, it's about realizing when to let go of your perfectionism and learning to be pleased with what you have done and with what you have finished.
How it works: One of the best ways to let go of perfectionism is to set a deadline. Do what you can, in the best way that you can, in the time-frame you have given yourself (you can apply this to whatever you are doing, be it around the house, or at work), doing so will help you to let go of the need to polish things up a bit too much.  

5. Feeling guilty about the past and anxious about the future
Spending too much time in the past reliving old painful memories, conflicts, missed opportunities, or living in the future imagining how things could go wrong at work, in your relationships and with your health, can develop into dreadful scenarios playing over and over in your mind. Not living in the present moment can lead to missing out on wonderful experiences too.
Change your habit by trying to engage in what you are doing. Not thinking about the past or feeling anxious about the future is a pretty impossible thing to do. Rather, observe your thoughts in moments that you tend to dwell on things that rarely happen, or anxieties that won't help you out in the present. You can do this by taking a moment to observe what you are doing and try engage in that as fully as you can. If that doesn't help, divert your attention to your breath for a couple of minutes, taking in what is around you.   
How it works: Living in the present moment will allow you to learn from past mistakes, enabling you to make better decisions for your future. Living in the present does not mean that you shouldn't plan ahead either. Rather, planning ahead for tomorrow or next year will give you a sense of excitement and will also bring about a sense of security and stability, particularly in financial matters.
6. Living in a sea of negative thoughts
Living a happier life becomes a lot harder when you let yourself be dragged down by negative voices. Dwelling on the negative details in your life and allowing those details to consume your thoughts is another way to make yourself unhappy.
Change your habit by replacing your negative thoughts with powerful influences. Take a look at what needs changing in your life. Starting with your social circle, dedicate most of your time to hanging out with positive people. In moments of isolation, listen to inspiring music and read stimulating books. Watch movies that exhibit a strong message and TV shows that will make you laugh.
How it works: Making small adjustments to your routine can help change your perspective in life. With a level-headed mind you will be more likely to think critically and solve any negative issues that need changing. Keep in mind that in our negative thoughts we often make mountains out of molehills. Frequently, the problem in your head can be solved or turned into something helpful or positive easily. 

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                    PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/                                                                                                                                                FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                       https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/                                                                                                                     FOR CROCHET DESIGNS                                                                                                   

                                https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com

7 Positive Thinking Rules That Can Improve Your Life

In times of crisis, there are always people who tell us that we should think positively. This is advice that sounds good and quite logical, but to think positive isn’t always easy or helpful, usually because we simply don’t know how to do so properly. This may seem a little puzzling - how can someone mess up thinking positively? However, after you finish reading this article you’ll understand that there are definitely a few mistakes that can be made, some of which you may have even made in the past...

1. Explore yourself

Every time we get upset or sink into depression because of something someone else has told us, we are actually projecting the negativity that lies in our thoughts about it. To change this situation and to adopt truly positive thinking, we must not ignore the little voice in our heads that makes us feel bad, but rather try to understand the reason for it. Just ask yourself why you’re upset and which side of your personality or lifestyle makes these actions or words difficult for you. Once you find the answer, you can tell yourself that now you know the reason for the negativity that surrounds your thoughts, and you can "fight" it with positive thoughts and actions that target the source of the problem.

2. Don’t resist negative thoughts

As you may already have understood from the previous section, positive thinking doesn’t always come at the expense of negative thinking, both of which can certainly coexist, however, the positive side should be given greater importance. One of the most important rules that help to do this, and which many do not follow, is that we shouldn’t suppress negative thinking altogether. Whenever there is anger, frustration, or sadness in our lives, we must accept these feelings and understand that they are created as a result of the reaction of our inner selves to the world. These feelings are there, but they do not define us. Just tell yourself in your head: "I'm angry/ frustrated/negative and these feelings are part of me, but they are not me." You are not sad or depressed, you feel sad or depressed - it is a small difference that may seem silly to some, but it has tremendous meaning and it makes it much easier to overcome negative thinking and adopt a better attitude.

3. Remember who you are and be realistic

Like a battery with a positive and negative side and like the eternal cycle of light and darkness in the world, we also have to have positive and negative sides. Positive thinking doesn’t ignore this fact, and therefore, in order to apply it effectively, we must accept ourselves as we are and not try to eliminate significant aspects of our personality. The father of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud put it simply: “Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength.” So, don’t let your positive thinking "run over" who you really are. If for example you want a job promotion, but you know that your professional knowledge is lacking, don’t tell yourself that you’ll definitely get it if you want enough and think positively. Instead, tell yourself that your chances of getting promoted will increase considerably if you spend an hour each day completing gaps in knowledge related to your work.

4. Forgive yourself

Positive thinking can’t make you happy if while having positive thoughts about the future you are still angry with yourself because of the past. The problem that many of you may be thinking right now is that forgiving yourself is good advice, but it can be as difficult to implement as positive thinking. To apply it, you can use the principles outlined in the first section of this article.

5. Visualize the fulfillment of your positive thoughts

When we are stuck in a negative mood, our imagination always creates terrible scenarios that make us postpone decisions, act hesitantly and feel general misery. In addition, when your mind is filled with imaginary events related to rejection, degradation, disappointment, or sadness, it harms our quality of life and prevents us from moving forward in our lives. We don’t actively try to think about this possible negative future; these thoughts simply appear because of our imagination. To adopt positive thinking, we must harness its mighty power in the opposite direction, and imagine positive scenarios frequently. It is important to remember that just as in the case of imagining negative thoughts, not everything we think about will actually happen in real life, but thanks to this tool we won’t fall into the trap of negative thinking and feel, as a result, stuck in place.

6. Use positive reinforcement from yourself and the environment

How many times in the past have you received compliments from other people and treated them with disdain and disbelief? And how many times have you consciously reinforced your positive thinking and trained it just as athletes train their muscles in the gym? If your answers are a lot and a little, respectively, then it's no surprise that you have a hard time enjoying the benefits of positive thinking and harnessing it to improve your quality of life. These two things are closely related to our ability to apply positive thinking in a way that really makes us happier

7. Remember that the journey is more important than the destination

If you want positive thinking to become a real way of life for you, you must remind yourself that it’s not only a tool for achieving goals - it is a way of life. If, for example, you wanted to buy a new apartment, you thought only positive thoughts throughout the search but were still unable to find the right place - you still deserve a pat on the back. You don’t really control the supply of real estate in your area, what other people think, or anything else that isn’t directly related to your inner world. So, if you were really positive during your search and didn’t feel stress, fear or other negative emotions, you were able to implement positive thinking in the best way possible - positive thinking doesn’t really guarantee us success, love, or progress; it only improves our chances and makes our journey towards these goals more pleasant.

 

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/   

  FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                                                                https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/                              

FOR CROCHET DESIGNS                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com