Counselor's Corner: How Not to Stop When Life Gets Rough (continued…)

by Stephanie Reck

The following list is some tips for how you can get through when life gets rough and not stop:

Give your body needed time to rest. If you are dealing with painful or stressful situations your body will use more energy. Sleep in an extra 30 minutes or take a longer break during the day.

Cut back on all non-essentials. If you don’t need to do it, then don’t! Take a walk in the morning or the afternoon, or even both as a way to declutter your mind and to destress.

Change your perspective. Not every day will be rough. We all have good days and not-sogood days. Focus on the good days that will come again.

Focus on what you can control. So much of what happens to us is out of our control, but the one thing we do have control over in any given circumstance is our attitude. If you can’t change a situation, why worry about it?

Change your focus to what is good, lovely, praiseworthy, and a good report. It is not helpful to keep focused on what is bothering you continually. Set aside a designated day each day to deal with what is concerning you, and then do your best to stay focused on what is good.

Start a gratitude journal as a way to implement tip #6.

Practice acceptance. Much suffering can be greatly reduced by coming to terms with our lives and accepting what is. If you can do something to change your circumstance, then do so, but if you can’t; then accept what you are not able to change.

Rough times happen to all of us, you are not alone in this. If life gets too overwhelming, take it one day at a time and do what you can do just for that day.

Reflect and respond:

What tip(s) will you use when you have a rough day, week, month? Do you have any tips you can share?