How to deal with anxiety over current international affairs

From Dr. Justin:

The current situation in Ukraine and Russia is concerning to say the least. It's reasonable to feel stressed or anxious about all the news on the airwaves right now.  Please know that you are not alone, and anxiety can be a regular response to experiencing increased fear, worry and stress during such unprecedented times. This can happen whether there is any real danger or not. Our imagination can be an even more powerful tool than the evening news. In case these kinds of  concerns are interrupting your life, here are a few quick tips that may help alleviate some of that stress or anxiety.

1. First, talk about it. Share your feelings with others and encourage them to do the same. It helps in more ways than one. Just the act of voicing your thoughts out loud relieves some of the burden of stress, but often, you’ll find you’re not alone in your thoughts. The comfort of companionship is a real thing. We were made to share our lives and togetherness has  not only a therapeutic effect, but it also helps us understand that we’re not alone.
2. Set limits or boundaries on the amount of time you spend watching the news.We are living in a time when two news-related phenomena have raised their heads. First, no other time has ever had so much information to deal with from everywhere on the globe, pretty much as it’s happening. Our time is called the information age for a reason. It’s a constant barrage to the point that it’s no longer necessary to seek it out, but it might be beneficial to shield ourselves from it. And second, news delivery is often framed to sound urgent–all of it, whether it is or not. It’s designed to heighten our fight-or-flight response and does a very good job.
3. Tap into your healthy routines- get plenty of rest, water and proper nutrition. This is good advice no matter what’s going on. No one operates optimally running on empty. Food and water and sleep, too, are what fuel your physical body. You can’t do much about what’s going on somewhere else in the world, but you can take good care of yourself so you’re ready for what happens in your own life.
4. Do something positive for someone else. This really works, and not only as a distraction. Visit someone you haven’t seen for awhile. Take a shut-in shopping. Babysit for a single mom. Call your mother. Helping someone else gets us out of what can sometimes become a detrimental head space into a situation where we not only spur positive feelings about our own life, but actually do something concrete to make the world a better place.
5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Don’t wait until you’re going down for the third time. You’d be surprised about how small changes make big differences and sometimes, the advice of a professional is just what you might need. You can easily book a discreet appointment with me at IFM online. I’d be glad to be the person to help.

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