Many people these days are struggling with overwhelming anxiety – about the future of the state of the world, their finances, their kids, their health.
But there are many things we can do during this time to embrace our current state of being and live a more stress-free life, even with so much uncertainty surrounding us.
Here are a few tips on how you can feel more grounded and at peace and less anxious during quarantine:
- Take Life One Day at a Time
Anxiety most often comes from living in the future. But if you are able to stay completely in the day, completely in the present, you are often able to gain the clarity you need to take the actions you need to, without letting anxiety take over. When you stay in the day, you usually will intuitively know what next steps you should take in your life, without having to go three to four steps down the road, which usually turn out to be fantasies anyway. - Take The Next Right Step
When you are living one day at a time and focusing solely on doing the next right thing, take each action that you do during the day with confidence and happiness. For example, the next right thing might be to fold the laundry, do the dishes or even just take a nap. Instead of worrying that you’re not doing enough, trust that whatever you are guided to do in the moment is the right thing. By stringing together a few days where you feel happy and satisfied, much of your anxiety will start to subside. - Take Each Action With an Open Heart
As you take the next right step each day, try to open your heart so that you feel as joyous as possible. For example, when you are going grocery shopping, enjoy selecting your favorite goods, feel gratitude for the moment, feel proud that you are taking care of yourself and your loved ones by providing for them. By greasing everything you do with love, your life will be more enjoyable. - Have Faith In Life
Another key component of reducing anxiety is trusting that everything happening around you is happening just as it is meant to. Things may look bad from your perspective, but often, life tends to work out in the end. Trust that good will be coming around the corner. - Don’t Waste This Time
Yes, living under quarantine has turned life upside down for most of us. Many of our old rituals and patterns of life have been altered, but that doesn’t mean that the change is necessarily bad. Use this time of stillness and change as an opportunity to grow, to learn and to give to others. By embracing the change, you will become more of who you are destined to be.
Dr. Jerry Gore, MD, is the clinical director of The Center for Holistic Medicine.