How to Stay Mentally Healthy When the World Feels Wrong

Many of you have told me that you are quite bothered and feel something very unsettling about our country and the world we live in. For some, the hope has been dampened about the future. For some, there is anxiety. For some there is anger.

Sometimes negative feelings can drive inspiration for change, to do something about it. But if the anger, anxiety, fear is getting in the way of you enjoying your life, getting in the way of your physical health, is it worth it?

Some people may feel a need to “feel bothered or upset” in order to live with themselves, that they are on the good side. STOP. Do you? Remember, you do not need to feel anger, or upset to feel you are a good citizen. So how do you handle your thoughts and emotions when living in an environment you fundamentally feel is contrary to your conscience?

1.     To do or not to do. To hold on or to let go.

Sometimes anger is not bad if it momentarily inspires action. But prolonged anger is damaging to health. The first step is ask yourself what you can do about the situation that bothers you. If you feel called to do something good because what you see is not right, take the positive action. If these intense feelings are there, ask yourself, “what am I inspired to do about it?” Ask yourself, “What CAN I do about it?” Then ask yourself, “what is NOT something I can do right now, that is outside of my control?” Whatever is NOT in your power, is the part I invite you to see if you can let go for your health sake.

Letting go, forgiving, is releasing yourself from the power of the situation or person you are upset at. Letting go takes the power away from them. If you let them control your emotions or take you down, they’ve won. Let yourself win by giving yourself permission to live the best life that you can control right now.

2.     The part is not the Whole.

Also realize that the bad we see, for example on the news is a fraction of reality. What if the news played mostly about humanitarian missions and kind things people have done. What if small acts of kindness by people in the community made it on the news? Would the perception we all have about our world change?

Know that just because something exists does not mean this is most of the reality you live in. Think of it like a pizza. A large pizza has many slices. Maybe one slice is what you see on TV. But some slices, are your work, kids, spouse, friends, family, community, groups you belong to, wonderful groups you are not a part of yet, other wonderful organizations that help people around the world. And these all make up the entire pizza. So keep into perspective. Choose what kind of information you want to surround yourself with. Of course, do not be ignorant, but choose how much of what information you want to bring into your space and be aware if it lifts you up or puts you down.

Finally, we often feel helpless as if there is not something we can do about things that really concern us. One thing you can do is to pray or send good energy to those you care about. You can send good intentions with love. The effects can be very powerful when we all do this, more so than we realize. So let us encourage love in a time like this.

If you are struggling with depression or anxiety, have done some therapy, counseling, meditation, taking medication or supplements but something is still wrong, there is more to help. You may feel stuck, or that you’ve done everything. But I have been lucky to see in my practice many people like you finally move into a life they feel good about themselves.

If you feel like you cannot reason yourself out of your feelings, you are not the only one. This is how our nervous systems are designed. Our nervous system must feel safe. Our body must feel congruent with our minds in order for the feelings to follow. The work we do integrates the body and nervous system with the mind for often much faster and better results. If you feel you need some additional assistance to breakthrough anxiety, depression, OCD, fatigue, hormonal moods etc. feel free to reach out and schedule an appointment.