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I cant lie to youthings these days are bleak.
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People are losing their jobs.
People cant pay for food or gas or housing.
What is this so-called hope you speak of?
Its completely normal to have trouble being optimistic, even in the best of circumstances.
But now its even more of a challenge.
So why bother trying to be hopeful when things are so overwhelmingly bad?
And performing those behaviors can, in turn, fuel more hope.
Indepression, for instance, a persistent feeling of hopelessness is often a defining symptom.
In the case ofanxiety, fear is one of the driving factors.
Being hopeful can help you build resilience.
Putting in the work to be hopeful has other psychological benefits too.
But resilience isnt just being able to withstand a difficult situation.
And if its not authentic, it isnt very helpful.
Think about, say, your mom or a close friendwhat brings them hope?
Can you share that with them or get some hope vicariously through them?
First, dont give up on your usual self-care routine.
The A stands foradversity,meaning you have to name the challenge or problem youre up against.
The B calls you to look at what negativebeliefyou have about the situation.
That means everything I wanted to do is canceled and theres nothing to look forward to.
Maybe something good could happen, but it feels stupid and naive to count on that.
But when you start to dispute those beliefs, you’re able to introduce other possibilities.
In those cases, youll need to draw on resilience.
Or you might need to go beyond that.
Reminder: You dont need to literally solve all of societys problems to be helpful.
And dont underestimate the power of being a listener, Dr. Comas-Diaz says.
This transcends psychology, she says.
It is being human.
But if you dont already have those close relationships, there are ways to build them.
Perhaps you have people in your circle of friends youd like to be closer with.
(Here are some tips onhow to find an affordable therapist right now.)
For some people, its always hard to be hopeful.
Right now, just about everyone is finding it challenging to maintain any semblance of a positive outlook.
But its not impossibleand may just be the key to mentally surviving the current state of the world.
