Coping With Difficult Times Archives | Life and Relationships 101

Self-Blame is Toxic and Unhelpful…But It’s Fixable!

We all experience “self-blaming” at times. But because self-blame is toxic, it means we are devaluing ourselves and denying the humanness in us all. I am well versed in this subject because even though I am a trained and licensed psychotherapist, I will still do this from time to time. When I experience self-blame, I know this is coming from the little girl inside that didn’t know any better in growing up. I never understood that we are all human and infallible. We all make mistakes along the way in life. Here is how easily we pick up this damaging…

Dealing With A COVID-19 Thanksgiving – How To Make It Work

This Thanksgiving holiday is like no other, at least not in most people’s generation. But you can still make this COVID-19 Thanksgiving Holiday work for you. It won’t always be this way. Eventually, we will return to our more normal life again. It’s really important to grab hold of the reality of this situation but to still find a way to make it better for you. It’s about accepting “what is” our current reality. The unknown can be scary because we don’t know what the outcome will be. We don’t know how to stop an illness we are experiencing for…

Depression and Surviving the Unknown With Covid-19 Pandemic

The Great Depression and Stock Market Crash of 1929, the World Wars, and the Cuban Crisis all had “the unknown” in common. Depression and surviving the “unknown” is what we are all experiencing currently. How do we know we will be “OK” in the end? Even though we are hearing great possibilities of new drugs for Covid-19, no one knows how well they will be effective, if at all. Who will get Covid-19? How is it truly transmitted from one person to another? Some people are wearing masks as recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Yet others are…

Feeling Alone, Isolated, or Invisible? Here’s What You Can Do Today!

Covid-19 pandemic has set a new social experience for most people. Feeling alone, isolated, or invisible are all normal for this time in our lives. Remember, there was no dress rehearsal for Covid-19. It’s an abnormal situation in our current lives. Many people on their own are feeling alone but are uncomfortable reaching out to others, or they choose instead to isolate even more and just “go inside” themselves. And some people choose to override possible contamination from Covid-19 and seek company anyway. Some create “safe” contact, and others may choose to override the recommendations for social distancing with friends.…

What Did You Learn About Yourself from COVID-19?

You have a perfect opportunity at your feet. Whenever life circumstances present themselves, you often learn about yourself and how you operate in different situations. COVID-19 is a great example. As our life goes on, we often take for granted our routine, friends, work, and often even our romantic relationships. It becomes automatic, and we don’t think about it much. That’s normal. But when there is a change in our circumstances, such as COVID-19, things that were “normal” for us can easily change. Sometimes the change involves loss. However, change also comes an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and…

Mother’s Day is Not the Same for Everyone: The Good, The Bad and the Sad

Mother’s Day is consistently the second Sunday in May. However, Mother’s Day is not always the same for everyone. For some, it means a happy and festive family gathering. For others, it may signify haunting childhood memories. And still, for others, it may be filled with sadness, loss, and regret. There is no “one size fits all” or “correct ” way to experience Mother’s Day each year. However, you would never know this from the retail stores’ point of view. For them, it’s advertising “finding the perfect gift for Mom,” or flooding the stores with displays of candy and flowers,…

Creating a Healthy Balance in Your Life and Dealing With the Unknown

Creating a healthy balance in your life is essential for good health, especially in difficult times. There are all kinds of crises… loss of employment, dealing with an illness of yours or a family member, financial struggles, loss of a relationship, etc. Having useful resources available, and using them is significant at those times, like now. By resources, I mean links to access helpful assistance or articles on coping and finding appropriate links for your particular needs. In this article, I am covering various online sites and activities to do while dealing with the current crisis. Also, I will be…

Dealing With Loss Of All Kinds – Learning To Cope

Dealing with loss and grief can present an opportunity to learn new coping methods, which will prepare us for a more significant loss in the future. However, not all loss is the same. Some kinds of losses can be disappointing, but we move on fairly easily. Other losses provide a challenge in terms of learning new coping methods. And unfortunately, some losses knock us to the ground. There are losses in life that remain in our gut every time we think of them, such as the death of a mate or even worse, the loss of a child. Even with…

Great Resource Regarding COVID-19 the Coronavirus Disease

All kinds of various sites online are coming up with updates and new information for dealing with COVID-19. It is really important to know the proper sites to use. This is a link for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is the government agency tasked with combating the COVID-19 outbreak and is absolutely reliable. Kind of out of the “horse’s mouth” as they say. Take a look at it if you want some reliable information. Try to stay away from lesser-known sources or sources that cannot be verified. Some people on social media may try to sensationalize this topic.…

How to Deal With Sudden Changes and the Unknown

Being forced to deal with sudden changes in your life or the unknown can be really unnerving. The COVID-19 pandemic is an excellent example. The article “That Discomfort You Are Feeling is Grief” is about how sudden changes and the unknown in our life can feel like grief. This idea may sound a bit crazy, but when you think about it, that concept makes sense. Grief is about the loss of what existed before something changed. Webster’s dictionary defines “grief” as “deep and poignant distress caused by or as if by bereavement.” It also uses the definition as a “mishap”…

Category: Coping With Difficult Times