Are you anxious lately? Today on the blog we have Clemence (the co-founder of Sesam) who talks about how to maintain calm and composure during the crisis or any other stressful situations in your life.
In times like now, it is normal to worry and lose our balance.
With questions like “what do you want to be when you’ll be an adult?” Or “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” we are conditioned and regularly reminded that we should know what our future will bring. We think that having control over our lives means having control over external factors. The COVID crisis reminds us that some external inputs are out of our reach and in such a situation we simply don’t know how things will be afterwards. So what to do? How can we stay sane in these times of subconscious insecurity? Maybe the answer does not sit in controlling the inputs but rather trying to learn to control our reactions to it and seeing the opportunities this situation brings.
Let’s take a minute to think about two positive lessons we can take out of this time:
Having the time to look at our life and reassess.
In fact, for many of us, COVID emptied our agenda and cut out many distractions. It pushed the reset button. Think about it: If your life in the current situation is an empty box, What element of your previous life do you want to put back in it? Those 20 meetings per week? Buying new clothes weekly? COVID, beyond the tragedy that it is, is an opportunity to change our life, if we want, and be more conscious about what we put in that box. There are no wrong answers to those questions. Just a chance to see what really matters to you. What are the things that truly make you happy? What are the things that make your eyes shine and put a big smile on your face?
Finding a way to deal calmly with stressful situations.
COVID or not, we will always be confronted with situations, when we feel like we are carrying a heavy weight on our chest. One simple trick to use before letting your head take you on a rollercoaster ride is the RAIN method:
- R Recognize what is happening
- A Allow life to be just as it is
- I Investigate inner experience
- N Non-Identification
There are many ways to learn to implement it. Many learn it through yoga without noticing it. Yoga, like many other sports or mindfulness practice, allows training our brain, through the body. It teaches us that nothing is permanent. The discomfort from a posture passes, the thoughts pass. To let them pass, one must learn to recognize what is happening. Observe and trust that it will pass. Yoga teaches us trust in the process despite not knowing what may come afterward. With time, it brings us back to trust our own capacities which allows us to handle “the now” smoothly. It makes us kinder towards ourselves and not bully ourselves when we are on this rollercoaster.
Practicing Yoga
COVID lockdown reminds you that only one thing is sure: YOU. Yoga helps us listen to ourselves, become best friends with ourselves so we don’t have to feel lonely when alone.
To finish, because we know that many are stuck in front of a computer, here are our favorite 8 minutes sequence which anyone can do to take a break from the screen. Taking a little moment to disconnect from the outer world to reconnect with our body and feelings is extremely important, now more than ever.
Remember to breathe consciously and move with your breath. Stay for about 3-5 breathes in the posture, then move to the other side. For the lower back, you can simply enjoy the stretch for 5 breaths. For the chest opener posture, you can open your arms while inhaling and close them in front of you when exhaling.
Trust yourself, you’ve got this!
Clémence is a French ex-pat living in Zurich. She has been practicing yoga for more than 7 years and 4 years ago became an ashtanga vinyasa yoga teacher. She later decided to dedicate herself to help independent teachers and customers. Together with 2 co-founders, we are creating sesam, a platform where yogis meet curated independent teachers in a personal and easy way.
Stay tuned for more resources, we have some great content lined up with experts in various fields – marketing gurus, coaches, wellness experts, chefs, and teachers to get you through this tough time. Stay safe and healthy! Make the most of your quarantine with My Swiss Story.
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