Change is inevitable, it is something that will always come at some point in your life. However, change can bring up varying emotions and thoughts. There may be feelings of anger, shock, sadness, excitement, fear, overwhelmed, grief, relief, and/or even acceptance. The range of emotion is a natural part of the change process, even if it may be a positive change. However, it is important to make sure that these emotions do not take control of the situation. The following are some useful tips on how to more easily cope with change.
1. Acknowledge the change and emotions: Sometimes it can feel easier to ignore the emotions or the presenting change, but this does not mean that it is going away. If anything, trying to ignore or avoid the change can create an increase in stress. It is important to take the time and recognize what it is that is changing and how this impacts your overall mood. Identify the emotions that you are experiencing and how they may be affecting you.
2. Be patient: Change can be difficult and managing the emotions that come with change can take time. Make sure that you are being patient with yourself throughout this process as it may take longer than you would like to feel comfortable or process the emotions as change occurs. Take the change as it comes each day at a time.
3. Find comfort as you can: An intimidating part of change is the unknown. Not knowing what the change will bring or how this change will impact your life. Instead of focusing on the unknown factors, take the time to identify comfort in something that you know to help guide you. This comfort could be watching your favorite TV show, listening to music, exercising, meditation, etc. Incorporating comfort into change can make it seem less intimidating and will increase your ability to process the change.
4. Maintain a schedule (as best as possible): Depending on what the change is, it may seem to be disrupting your schedule. Work to create a consistent routine or schedule throughout the change, whether this is the schedule that you already have in place or creating a new one in its entirety. This helps to add consistency into your everyday life which can help alleviate the difficulties of the unknown in the change.
5. Reframe your thoughts: Look at how you are thinking about this change. Are your thoughts presenting in a negative fashion? If so, this will make processing the change and difficult emotions that much harder. Take the time to recognize the negative thoughts and reframe them into something positive. For example: if this change is that you’re moving out of your town, your thoughts may sound like, “it is going to be so difficult to relocate and get used to my new town”. Instead, reframe this thought to something along the lines of “I am going to be able to explore a new town and find new places that I may enjoy”.
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