Different Coping Strategies
Every person who deals with, struggles with, copes with, battles or endures some form of mental health condition will have their own ways of getting through the low moments our minds can put us through.
Some coping strategies are easier to put into practice than others, but over the years, I’ve tried and tested different methods and found a few that genuinely work for me. So, I thought I’d share one of them with you.
It’s nothing groundbreaking or revolutionary. It’s not something nobody has ever heard of before. It’s simply a little coping strategy that works for me — Sam’s method, if you like.
When there’s a sign of rain, we take cover. So why don’t we act fast and ‘take cover’ when there are signs of ‘low’ mood?
The Fear Of Judgement
I used to worry that people might hear me talking to myself. I don’t mean in a ‘mad’ way – just the little things I’ll quietly murmur to myself to help me through something, reassure myself, or simply make whatever I’m doing at the time a little easier.
I’m approaching 40 (in 2027), and the closer I get to that four-decade milestone, the fewer hoots I seem to give about what other people think of me, what I say, or what I do.
And actually, I think there’s something quite freeing about that.
What Makes Us Unique
Just like my cupcake photo, what makes us stand out from the ‘crowd’ – and what allows us to handle things in our own unique way – is our minds.
We all see things differently. We react differently to the situations life throws at us, process our thoughts and emotions in our own way, and develop our own methods of coping.
That individuality is part of what makes us who we are.
It’s Time To Talk To Yourselves
This isn’t ‘one size fits all’, because I know it won’t work for everybody. People across the UK and around the world are dealing with a huge variety of situations, both mentally and physically, so I’m certainly not claiming that these four little words will fix life’s biggest problems.
For me, though, it’s the little steps that count.
“Sam, this will pass.”
That’s it.
Those four words relate directly to whatever thoughts and feelings are going through my mind at that particular moment. I say them to myself as a reminder that, however difficult things might feel right now, that moment doesn’t have to last forever, and lo and behold, it doesn’t.
I told you – it’s nothing groundbreaking. But it works for me.
And if sharing something this simple helps even one person out of the billions of us on this planet, then sitting here writing this blog post at 5:30am on a Tuesday has been 100% worth it.