Strategies for Coping During Troubling World Events
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The Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute (CTRI) have posted a group of useful strategies to help individuals and families cope with their worries during troubling world events.
“Strategies for Coping During Troubling World Events”, written by Wendy Loewen, Director, ACHIEVE Centre for Leadership, addresses the fear and anxiety caused by world events such as the war in the Ukraine, noting that “even though there is much about our current situation that we cannot control, we can shift our focus to what we do have influence and power over”.
She gives five practical suggestions:
1. Focus on the present.
Spend time immersing yourself in the moment throughout the day. It can be useful to use a prompt, such as timer, to help build this habit.
Use your senses to bring your whole awareness into the present. Something as simple as changing your focal distance to look outside your immediate surroundings, petting an animal, caring for your plants to incorporate this into your daily routine.
2. Exercise choice: when we feel powerless, it’s easy to become passive.
Choose your routine: ensure you have routines that allow you to face the day, break it up into small chunks, and end your day well.
Choose your distractions: Have a list of small, easy-to-do creative tasks that you can fit into your day.
Choose how you can make a difference: As you do what you can to take care of yourself, consider how you can support people directly impacted by the world event.
3. Keep active and engaged with life: A crucial act of self-care is to intentionally stay moving, active and engaged with life.
Move often – literally: stretch, dance, walk or jog on the spot, garden, walk up and down the stairs, silly walk around your house, etc.
Do something you enjoy every day: this can be as simple as listening to a podcast, working on a hobby, enjoying a healthy snack.
Engage with humour, joy and curiosity to counter distress and apprehension.
4. Remain informed while limiting your media intake.
Once or twice a day, listen to learn what is happening from a credible news source, and then shut it down. Don’t let watching the news become your go-to when you have a few minutes of down time.
Choose when you take in information: At what point in the day are you best able to hear, process, and then let go of potentially upsetting information? For most people, this is unlikely to be at the end of the day or just before going to bed.
5. Stay socially connected.
Schedule quality time with people you enjoy and trust, either in person, by phone or on video call.
When you are around people you care about, try to stay present and enjoy the moment of being together. Consider leaving your phone behind, or at least in your pocket.
The CTRI website offers a range of resources, including a two-minute video on How to Support Children in Times of Global Stress. https://ca.ctrinstitute.com/1-minute-insights/
The British BBC news program Newsround, designed for children aged 6-12, addresses serious content such as the war in the Ukraine in specially edited videos for children that look at issues without exposing children to the disturbing images often shown on adult news programs. They offer a special section reporting on the war in the Ukraine, and have produced a page and animated video segment offering advice to children who are upset by the news at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/13865002 There is also a page of strategies for children who are upset by the news, suggesting:
Share your worries: talking to an adult you trust is a good idea if you are worried about anything.
It’s normal to feel upset: You won’t be the only one who feels this way, and adults get sad and confused too, so there is nothing wrong with feeling like this.
Do things that make you happy: Watch a favourite film, take your dog for a walk, read some of your favourite book, go for a walk with your family. Try to read a happy story before you go to bed at night. If you have worried thoughts when you go to bed:
o Remember things that make you happy and think about these as you’re going to bed, so your head is full of happy thoughts.
o Surround yourself with nice things by your bed – perhaps a happy photo that makes you smile – so this is the last thing you see before you sleep.
o Read a book you love that will help to settle your thoughts.
o If you have bad dreams, talk about it or even try drawing it. This will help you confront your fear.
o Keep things with you that make you feel secure – even if it’s your old teddy bear that you keep hidden from your friends!
Remember, it’s rare: Don’t forget that terrible things are on the news because they are rare and do not happen very often.