Managing Uncertainty

Jennifer Close • March 12, 2021

While many things are outside of our control, our mindset is key to coping with difficult circumstances and facing the unknown.

  • Focus on the present. Uncertainty is often centered on worries about the future and all the bad things you can anticipate happening. It can leave you feeling hopeless and depressed about the days ahead, exaggerate the scope of the problems you face, and even paralyze you from taking action to overcome a problem. One of the surest ways to avoid worrying about the future is to focus on the present. Instead of trying to predict what might happen, switch your attention to what’s happening right now. By being fully connected to the present, you can interrupt the negative assumptions and catastrophic predictions running through your mind.
  • Maintain your daily routine. Routines can be calming and reassuring. Keeping to regular mealtimes, the same time to go to bed and rise, and getting dressed in the morning are all especially important to combat the feeling of disorientation when regular schedules are disrupted.
  • Practice self-care and stress management techniques. Get enough sleep, eat a balanced diet, remain active, and stay connected with loved ones. It also helps to stay connected to personal faith, as well as practice relaxation breathing, meditation or any preferred stress management techniques.
  • Rely on calming outlets. When anxiety rises, resist the urge to reach for unhealthy snacks or an alcoholic beverage. Instead, make your go-to reaction something like drawing, working on a puzzle, yoga, walking, meditating or putting on music and dancing your socks off! Moving your body is one of the best ways to dissipate stress hormones.
  • Seek assistance. The uncertainties of our time are new to all of us. There is no ready template to instruct us how to navigate them. Be open to asking for help. Your EAP is just a phone call away. 
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