It’s been three months since the United States has had a major administration shift, and the world, for millions, has turned upside down. Surveys have found that people are more disapproving, anxious, and fearful than ever. In addition to the mass layoffs at every level of the federal government and those subcontracted or even receiving funds from the federal government, war is being waged against the LGBTQ community, people of color, women, migrants, and any intersection thereof. Within these global and national challenges, people’s own personal losses, life-altering transitions, and challenges continue. Whatever your politics are, the one thing that is indisputable is that we are living in a state of brace.
Bracing yourself is something that is heard usually during pre-flight directions, as in “In case of a crash landing, we will ask you to get into the brace position.” The brace position is putting your head down and covering your neck. The overall act of bracing yourself is to be vigilant for the crash and ready to move into position. To brace oneself politically means to acknowledge the tensions and divisions while seeking firm footing and balance amid shifting landscapes. This might be an effective way to cope because it emphasizes preparedness over sheer panic. There is also a certain amount of adaptability that must occur, which might increase resilience. The danger of constantly adapting to circumstances and remaining in a state of brace is that chronic vigilance takes psychological and physical tolls such as anxiety, stress, exhaustion, and/or burnout. Also, bracing is a defensive position, which means that there is very little openness to new ways to change. The further danger is that crisis and chaos can become normalized because bracing against what might be does not leave a lot of room to discuss the possibilities of what could be.
There may be a lot that is unknown, but psychologists have found that this state of hypervigilance is untenable, so how do we deal with it? Since the current circumstances cannot be simplified, to move from a reactive position to a proactive one, strategies have to be multifaceted. This means that we have to engage our minds, our hearts, our bodies, and most definitely our relationships.
Shift Your Thoughts: Cognitive Strategies to Coping With Uncertainty
According to Amy Gallo, co-host of the Women at Work podcast and contributor to the Harvard Business Review, bracing yourself for disappointment, loss, or other negative situations means that you are constantly thinking, that most people find themselves unable to turn off thoughts of what could happen / how bad it might be / best-worst scenarios / other dark thoughts. She suggests that, instead of giving into the constant doomsday loops playing in our brains, we use our cognitive power for something more positive—for example, a contingency plan. We often get stuck at the worst-case scenario and are immobilized by the possibilities, so we stay there, replaying what could happen. If you are going to go there anyway, continue down the road. Think, So the worst has happened; what now? Come up with a plan of how you would deal with what might happen. Come up with two or three plans. Creating contingencies not only helps you feel more in control (thereby minimizing anxiety), but it also shows you there are a number of ways that you will be resilient in the face of even the worst that could happen.
Follow Your Heart: Hope and Love as a Basis of Resistance
When everything that is happening is so emotionally charged and political divides are polarized to the point when everything feels like a zero-sum situation, it’s easy to detach or even decide to bury our heads in the sand to protect ourselves from the chaos. However, the best thing might be to feel your feelings and to acknowledge them. According to a study by Ford and Troy (2019), emotional acceptance—the willingness to experience emotions without judgment—is associated with greater psychological resilience during stressful societal events. Rather than trying to numb yourself to the anxiety produced by not knowing what is going to happen or even expecting “the worst,” create space to identify and process your emotional responses, whether that’s anger, fear, hope, or grief. This emotional awareness can serve as a foundation for more thoughtful civic engagement rather than reactive behavior (Halperin, 2014). For example, author of Untamed and podcast co-host of We Can Do Hard Things, Glennon Doyle, recently shared that social movements need to go beyond just reacting. She says, “You don’t have to yell at anybody actually. That’s so exhausting. I’m so tired. Like I just want joy and beauty and love and thisness and then everybody else will be like I want that. Right? So that’s what it is to me. It’s an irresistible revolution.”
Work It Out: Embodied Practice
We are not only suffering psychologically and emotionally but, for many people, their bodies are literally carrying the burden of all this stress. Those from cultures where mental health or feelings in general are not openly discussed might be unconsciously processing through physical stresses such as illnesses, chronic pain, and autoimmunities. Likewise, it makes sense that some strong coping strategies are those that are somatic and embodied practices. Things like yoga, mindful walking, breathing exercises, and movement (such as dancing and tai chi) when distressed have the power to regulate feelings of anxiety and other negative emotions that feel overwhelming. This is because all of these activities activate your parasympathetic nervous system and can shift you from a state of hypervigilance to one of relative calm. Sometimes we literally have to release all of the tension and unease that we are feeling through physical activity.
Ordinary Magic in Action: Lean In, Let Go, or Fight Back
Ultimately, people can’t live in a state of brace indefinitely. Ultimately, one must lean in, let go, or fight back. This could mean transitioning to a state of openness and leaning into uncertainty instead of defending against it. It could also mean deciding what things are important and letting go of what isn’t. It might also mean that it’s time to fight back through whatever means feels right, such as building and joining social movements or coming up with creative ways to support vulnerable communities. Whatever you choose, commit to at least one act of ordinary magic:
- Embrace uncertainty. Anxiety from uncertainty is mainly future-focused, so to embrace uncertainty, try to stay in the present. The 5-senses exercise is a simple grounding technique that can bring you to the present. To do this exercise, sit, breathe, then note the following: 5 things you can see / 4 things you can feel / 3 things you hear / 2 things you can smell / 1 thing you can taste.
- Take a break from politics. The goal is to give yourself permission to disconnect and schedule time to do so. Let people know you are disconnecting so they can support you. During that time, really step away from news, doomscrolling, and debates. If that is too hard, then start by understanding how much time you are spending online by assessing your habits and then setting a daily time limit that you try to follow for a week (and then another week after that…).
- Build community and connection with like-minded people through positive political action. Research shows a connection between well-doing and well-being. This can be through advocacy, activism, protest, or other actions. Pick a group to engage with or connect with someone who is actively doing work in areas you eventually want to join as well. The point of this magic act isn’t to build movements overnight—even weak ties can create impact. It is enough to keep adding to networks of change while cultivating empowerment, motivation, hope, and/or optimism.