These days hard times seem to come more frequently in life rather than the good times. You could be experiencing a financial setback or a love one might be facing a health challenge. Maybe you’ve lost your job, or you are weighed down by an unhealthy relationship.
Unfortunately, we don’t have complete control as to when or how these difficult times appear in our lives, but we always have a choice as to how we react to them.
Overcoming tough times is possible. Here are some ways to cope with hard times according to mental health experts:
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- Reframe your perspective.
It is natural to feel overwhelmed when facing difficulties. It can feel like they just keep coming one after another or they seem to go on forever. Thoughts like this can increase our frustration and makes us feel worse. Step away from this kind of mindset and try to see things from a new perspective. This is the time to tell yourself that logically no situation is forever. Remind yourself of the times you have gone through similar situations and came out okay.
Choosing a more positive mindset can help you deal better with a difficult situation as it improves your coping mechanisms, mood, and self-esteem.
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- Feel your emotions.
When you are in the midst of a difficult situation, emotions will naturally come up. There will be sadness, frustration, hopelessness, etc. They can be overwhelming, so we tend to ignore them.
But emotions don’t go away if we ignore them or hold them in. The best thing to do is acknowledge your emotions as they surface and allow yourself to feel them. When you deny your emotions, it will make the situation more difficult to cope with. So give yourself the space to cry, scream, be upset, vent, etc. This is an important part of healing as feeling the feelings allows you to process what is happening.
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- Practice positive projection.
Positive projection means focusing on the possible positive outcomes of a situation. This is an is an effective strategy when going through tough times. Focusing on the desired outcome of a situation can help you feel better, and it puts you in a better position to deal with the difficult situation.
Positive projection requires doing the mental work, through meditation for example. While meditating, try to focus on the desired outcomes for the situation. Also, positive projection entails turning your positive intention into words. For example, you can say, “I failed in the college entrance exam. But this is just part of the process. I can keep on trying with other schools.”
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- Learn to let go.
Our natural response when faced with a difficult situation is to take charge and control the situation. We go into the “fix it” mode. But there are lot of things that are not in our sphere of control, and the more we want to control the outcome of a situation, the more overwhelming things can become. Stepping back and letting go of the need to control things is more helpful because only then can you gain more clarity of the situation.
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- Find meaning and purpose.
In order to deal with difficult situations, it is important to find the meaning and purpose of what you’re going through. Finding a sense of meaning of the difficult situation will help keep us hopeful and willing to endure the hardship.
The meaning and purpose of a situation may not obvious, but make an effort to look for them. It can set you on the course of overcoming your difficulty.
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- Establish healthy rituals.
During difficult times, rituals can bring some comfort and can ground us in these times of change and uncertainty. Examples include regular meditation, daily morning workouts, or journaling every night.
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- Connect with your support system.
In the midst of difficult times, feeling connected can help you cope with your situation. This is where your support system comes in. Your support system can be family, friends, or all the people who care about you. Your support system can be there for you to offer help, a word of advice, or encouragement when you need it most.
Hard times can make you feel isolated, so surrounding yourself with your support system is essential.
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- Use your coping tools.
We all have a set of tools for coping when difficult times happen. Do what works for you. It could be regularly meeting with your close friends, volunteering, or going to the gym. Identify what has helped you in the past and use them in your current situation.
It is part of our human experience to face tough times. Challenging as they may be, there are ways to cope with them effectively. Consider these suggestions as they can help you navigate and, ultimately, overcome these difficult times.
Sources:
Lovering, Nancy. “10 Ways to Help You Get through Tough Times.” Last modified March 29, 2022. https://psychcentral.com/health/how-to-get-through-hard-times.
Robinson, Lawrence and Melinda Smith. “Surviving Tough Times by Building Resilience.” Last modified March 4, 2023. https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/surviving-tough-times.htm.
Warrell, Margie. “10 Things to Remember When Going through Tough Times.” Last modififed May 22, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/margiewarrell/2020/05/22/ten-things-to-remember-when-going-through-tough-times/?sh=20168945315d.