Can coaching help deal with stress or anxiety during the pandemic?
Coaching can really help you manage your feelings of stress or anxiety. How? Both are a mental and sometimes physical response to the way that we feel about ourselves or situations in our lives. Many people feel out of control, panicky or very tense. But it doesn’t need to be this way. If we look at things in a different way, understand what heightens levels of stress or anxiety and learn to respond and think differently, the feelings will naturally subside.
We need to recognise that at the present moment in time - wherever your country is at with the virus or coming out of lockdown - we have all experienced a period of immense change. Stress, and even anxiety, are natural reactions to this. However it doesn’t mean that we have to suffer in silence. There are ways that we can manage these ‘normal’ feelings that make them far less damaging and long reaching. Getting support now will enable you to move forward in a far more productive and positive way.
It may be difficult to tackle these areas on your own, but with help it can really work. I have, personally, worked with many many clients who thought they’d just have to put up with it. Yet weeks later, after working through it, they felt so much better. People report sleeping better, that negative thought patterns become under control and even those who’d had panic attacks found they had almost gone.
Here are some common questions about anxiety and stress;
How can I make it go away when I don’t even know why I’m doing it?
Any response that we end up repeating can become, in a sense, a habit. It is a habitual response to a particular trigger. That trigger may be a certain situation - or even the thought of it. With help you can understand the reason that it has been happening and change the way you respond.
The more I try the worse it gets, why?
Sometimes, although our intentions are good, the more pressure we put on ourselves to solve something, the more stressed or anxious we become. By working with a coach, that additional stress is taken away and you can just concentrate on feeling the way you want again.
If I go for help, will the coach just think I’m crazy?
We see people all the time dealing with stress and anxiety. It is a really understandable and common issue. We all need a bit of help sometimes (even coaches!). With a good coach any feelings of embarrassment or discomfort will disappear. The hardest part is making a decision to speak out and book to see someone. It gets easier from there on in.
Why am I doing this? I’m usually really strong and in control!
This is one where we really need to give ourselves a break. We have all been living through unprecedented times - certainly in the course of most of our lifetimes.
Anxiety and stress can happen to anyone. In fact sometimes it can feel worse if you are normally really capable or strong. At their cause, these reactions happen for very logical reasons - it’s just that the response has become unhelpful. The more in control you like to be, the less you’d like feeling these negative feelings - which can just add to the whole effect. If you want to be back to ‘normal’, own up to how you are feeling and get some help. You will feel a whole lot better and back to being you.
Will it just be a waste of money?
Only you can decide if it’s worth the investment. A good way to look at it though is if you are happy to pay the cost of six sessions to stop feeling overly stressed or anxious, then its worth it.
How long will it take to sort this out?
Surprisingly, even with people who have been suffering for quite a while, results can begin to happen very quickly. Within the space of a few weeks you will be beginning to feel much better and back in control. The key is to actually start the process of change. The sooner you do that, the sooner you will see and feel the difference.
We are all in this together, but our experience of it is different
The key to dealing with stress and anxiety is not about generalised affirmations or exercises in a book. It is about working with you as an individual. It doesn’t matter what ‘kind’ of person you are, we are all unique. That’s why an experienced coach can get you to exactly where you want to be and help you find soloutions that resolve issue specific to your own personal experinces, that fit with you and your life.