What gets you through the day or night? You know, the day is filled with different feelings. We can wake up feeling grumpy or depressed, and later in the day, we might feel happy. It could be that we’ve been thinking about a problem for a long time, we might be in an emotional state, we might be excited about something, or just appreciating the day and everything in it. I’m interested in how we cope with days and times that are stressful.
Sometimes we only have one stressful day, and the next day everything is fine. Things work out. But sometimes we have problems over a longer period, and they are difficult to overcome.
So how do I cope? Well, I use several coping mechanisms. One is going for a walk or a jog. Another is to sit quietly and reflect or meditate. I also keep myself busy with pre-arranged activities and tasks, which helps to take my mind off things. I find that music calms the nerves and helps me think. I also reach out and contact people, family, and friends. But this is a difficult one because you don’t want to burden them with your problems. Sometimes it’s just best to work through things yourself. Writing down your problem sometimes seems to minimize it.
Sometimes there is a deeper level to emotional turmoil during the day. It could involve problems you are struggling with, an emotional issue such as a heartbreak, the loss of a loved one, or a challenge to your way of living, whatever that may be. These issues need to be dealt with on a different level. I’m not a psychologist, and I can’t offer psychological advice, but I will say that psychology and psychological advice have pervaded modern society. It sometimes seems ridiculous to me that there’s a psychological explanation for everything and that psychology is the panacea that’s going to fix all sorts of problems. Yes, I agree that psychology has its merits—I’ve benefited from it, both from reading about it and studying it at university—but I think there are other things that help us cope. One is our own personal philosophy. Another is the influence of family and friends, very close ones, of course, that you can confide in. Others find strength in faith. Yet others see things in philosophical terms. Let’s take a silly example—a Stoic. There are a lot more of them now, with everybody reading Marcus Aurelius (there are so many books on him these days and his philosophy). But what I’m saying is that if you’re a Stoic, you’re going to approach life in a different way. You don’t need a psychologist to tell you what to do. In fact, I once went to a psychologist when I was going through a rough time, and she told me such nonsense that I had to disengage after the second session, and I’ve never spoken to her again. But psychologists can be helpful. Many, many years ago, I had an issue that had been creeping up in my 20s, and a caring psychologist helped me find the solution. It was an amazing insight —so simple, but it had affected my life in a deep way?. I’m not berating psychologists; I’m just saying they’re not the only solution. And then some can find healing in reflection, which could include walks in nature, communing with nature, sport, social activities, and so on.
It’s a big subject, this one about coping with emotional rhythms. So let’s leave it at that for now, and perhaps I’ll tackle it on a more formal level some other time.
