7 Tips To Stay Sane In A Crazy World

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2020 has been a year. Covid-19 is spreading around the globe and social and political tensions are high.

That being said, here are 7 tips to stay sane in a crazy world.

1. Limit Your Consumption of News & Social Media

It is important that we stay up to date on ways to stay healthy and safe. It is important that we voice our opinion for causes we believe in. However, it is very important that we step back and give ourselves a break from the stress.

We don’t need to spend our entire day with the news on in the background as we argue our position in the Facebook comment sections.

30 minutes of news a day is enough to know what you need. A well crafted post and a few thoughtful responses will get your point across better than flooding news feeds.

After you get the essentials, the news is a toxic negative spiral. After you state your opinion and rebuttal, there is only so much you can do.

Take a break and it will not only free up your time and help you de-stress, but also it will make you more energized and effective when you enter back into the fray.

2. Go Outside for Walks (Bonus Add Nature)

Limiting our exposure to Covid-19 is a real and important thing.  However, the threat of isolation and cabin fever is also a real threat to our mental and physical health.

Taking walks outside is healthy and necessary. Your skin needs vitamin D. Your lungs need fresh air. If you have the ability to take walks outside of the city and inside of nature, even better.

You can even go on walks with friends and remain 6 feet apart.

3. Meditate and Practice Breathing Exercises

Mediation and breathing exercises are one of the best things we can do to help unwind our busy minds. Set a timer. Sit down and pay attention to the breath. Whenever thoughts stray, acknowledge it and go back to focusing on the breath.

Thoughts will stray 99% of the time. But that’s ok. It’s all about the practice and the idea that there is nothing to do but surrender and relax until the timer goes off.

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Similar to mediation, try relaxing breathing exercises like the 4-7-8 breathing pattern. Lie down on your back and be sure to breath deep into your diaphragm. 4 second inhales, hold it for 7 seconds, 8 second exhales.

4. Pick Up A Hobby & Set Goals

If we’re stuck at home, it’s a great time to pick up a skill. Diversions are great for the mind and new skills give us an increased sense of confidence.

We should all choose a hobby and set little improvement goals each week. It’s nice to monitor progress and have some fun.

5. Let Go

Realize that we can’t control everything. The world is a big confusing place. Sometimes it’s best to simply let go and enjoy the moment.

6. Free Write

Free writing is a great way to free the mind. Open up a journal and just start writing. I like to set a timer for 21 minutes and simply write until the timer goes off. There is no “point” to writing other than to unload any thoughts. This is more about the therapeutic benefits than the art.

By putting down what is racing through our brains onto paper, we free up brain space and gain clarity of thought.

7. See A Therapist

Mental health is a common and serious issue. If you are struggling to maintain balance in these trying times you should consider seeing a professional. Therapists are trained to work with you to get your life back on track.

Therapy can work wonders and has become increasingly easier to access for everyone because of the availability of online therapy options.

In Conclusion

Now more than ever we need to make sure we are caring for our own mental health. There are a lot of things that we can do as individuals to improve our mental health. In improving our own mental state we can hope to improve the collective mental health of the world.

Thank you for reading.