How to Stay Strong and Resilient Even in Chaos

Going through difficult situations can really weigh you down. Whether it is a layoff, an eviction, a loss of property or something else, it can cause you to have a difficult time.

It is normal to feel burdened by the weight of our thoughts during difficult times that only gets worse by overthinking.

Some people come out of hard situations even stronger and with positive attitudes than before. They stay strong and carry on with their lives and make the best out of their situations.

Other people might have it hard and may take years to recover from their losses and tough times.

Resilience enables you to bounce back from crisis and to endure prolonged hardships. However, this does not imply that you recover right away or pretend to be okay.

A resilient individual has his good and bad days; but, they know how to manage all that effectively. For instance, they can try to relax by working out to stay strong.

So, How Do You Stay Strong in Tough Situations?

Well, don’t despair. There are effective tips you can use to manage the bad days and build resilience in chaos, so you emerge out of it all stronger and more hopeful.

Here are ways to deal with chaos:

1. Don’t bottle up your emotions

When faced with tough situations, our strengths might turn into weaknesses. When we don’t know how to deal with stress and anxiety, situations might backfire on us. Even so, don’t bottle up what is bothering you.

Open up to someone you trust and share with them what is troubling you. Speak up about any chaos that might be happening in your life with a counselor or other medic if necessary. If anything, talking it out is therapeutic and can help you see a light in your dark situation.

As the old saying goes, ‘a problem shared is a problem halved.’ And this is not just some old proverbial saying—it is actually a truth that has scientific backing proving it.

2. Take difficulties as situations meant to change your life positively

Stress causes you to have negative feelings, but don’t let yourself be submerged in negative feelings. In short, don’t let the situation be your master.

Cultivate positive thoughts and believe in yourself. Accept reality, and focus on the positive side of the issue. You can do this by simply changing your perspective on the matter.

Of course, this is easier said than done. But it is possible to remain positive in hardships, including using self affirmations.

3. Always keep hope for the best even in tough times

Never succumb to despair. Keep fighting; keep hoping; keep believing. Better days are ahead.

Remember, everything that has a start, also has an end. And after the storm, the sun must shine.

4. Look at the bigger picture during the tough situations

Your current situation does not reflect your future life. Stay strong and look ahead at the bigger picture. Understand that the dark days will inevitably come to an end and better days lie ahead.

Anticipate the better days and brighter future that will come and prepare for those days. Don’t wallow too much in self-pity. Keep a positive outlook always, and take everything in your stride, rather than taking the incidence too personally or the hurts of the situation to heart.   

If you must look back on your life and what caused the drawback, do so only with the intent of learning from the experience and improving your situation going forward.

5. Stay active and exercise both your body and mind

Stay active by engaging in workout exercises even as simple as jogging, cycling or walking. You could even exercise right at home using workout equipment like a treadmill.

Exercise is great for burning off some of the bad calories and sweating out the negative energy from your system. It’ll also strengthen your mind because exercise boosts your mood, emotions and builds your endurance.

Don’t forget to eat a balanced diet throughout to keep you body strong. But avoid emotional eating as a way to deal with stress because that will only leave you feeling worse and unhealthy.

6. Stay open minded and alert to opportunities to improve things

Some people can get too negative and defensive when under stress. Unfortunately, that makes them lose touch with their environment and harder to spot opportunities to make a comeback.

Be more open minded about your situation and always look out for opportunities to change the situation for the better. Opportunities are all around us. You just have to look.

With this positive attitude, you’ll surely be pleasantly surprised to find the positive opportunities are all around you that you can tap to make things better for yourself.  

7. Watch out for a relapse

Sometimes you can try to improve your situation only to fall again and fail to improve the situation. In such a case, it’s easy to throw your hands up and just give up. Afterwhich, you can relapse in to crippling self-pity and self-loathing.

Don’t let that happen to you. If you fall seven times, get up again the eighth time. It won’t be easy to get up again and again when you fall, but it will be totally worth it. The harder the battle, the sweeter will be the victory and the more of an inspiration to others you will be.

So, never give up on your will to not just survive, but also thrive. Where there is a will, there is a way. Find that way out of the chaos and make your life better. You can do it and inspire others.