Catch your breath.

Life is always throwing us curveballs. No matter how prepared we think we are, something can always happen that really throws us. I know I’ve felt like this sometimes, but I always try to remember that it’s just temporary. Sometimes it’s not so easy to just say things to yourself in order to calm down, so here are 7 ways to catch your breath when things aren’t exactly going your way:

1. Run down your reserves. Use up that rainy day fund, or call in a favor to someone. There are times that doing this things are appropriate, and when you’re stressed it’s okay to indulge a little.
2. Lean on friends. rue friends are obvious in bad times. The best friends support you without contributing to the problems. Lean on them a little and show them that you trust them. If all you need is to catch your breath, you should not be hesitant to ask your friends for support (then be willing to do the same for them later).
3. Tear off half your to-do list. I am all about to-do lists, but when you’re feeling overwhelmed a list is one of the last things you want to see. Take off the tasks that don’t need immediate doing and ease the burden on yourself.
4. Ask for mercy. No matter where the waves are coming from there is someone, somewhere who can give you mercy if only you ask for it. You should not feel bad about asking for a break just to get you through a short bad patch.
5. Think long term survival first. Your problems will quickly escalate if you don’t know what to focus on. You must attend to your most important needs first.
6. Downgrade your expectations but mark your place. When you are in the middle of it, you may have to cut back on your achievements. Put your progress on hold for a couple of days and concentrate on catching your breath. If it is not essential, it can wait till you are back on your feet. However, before you stop doing something, mark where you are up to so that you can quickly get back on track later. Measure, bookmark, photograph, write down where you are today, so that you can pick up where you left off later.
7. Take one step at a time, do one thing at a time. Look at everything as individual tasks, and when they’re completed congratulate yourself. It’s impossible to do everything at once, and you’ll just get more flustered trying to do so.

If you find yourself “gasping for air,” I hope these ideas find you well. Life is good, but everyone is entitled to our bad days. Do you have any other helpful advice?

(photo courtesy of basykes on flickr)