Uncertainty, turbulence and unpredictability are unsettling, overwhelming and scary. Right now what we need most is to find ways to remain calm and productive.

• Stop catastrophising – do not be derailed or seduced by fear…

Don’t feed the drama by sharing fake news or devastating videos. Choose credible media sources and (if you can) limit your consumption of news rather than having it on in the background all day. Stay with the facts … don’t make assumptions about the future. Focus on what you have, not on what you don’t have. Catastrophising and allowing yourself to think about all the things that can or could go wrong raises our anxiety levels even more. Be disciplined about staying out of fear .. be disciplined with your thoughts. Stop the ruminating and predicting of dramatic outcomes… remember “.. the future is open and you don’t need to know the future to be hopeful”

• Hold on to hope – don’t give in to chaos…

Holding on to hope is a practice – there is always hope and knowing that, believing that makes hope even more possible Actively remember all the good, remember the many civilians and NPO’s such as Gift of the Givers and Ladles of Love doing great work to feed the nation and people helping each other…. as the Daily Maverick said today “The past week not only revealed to us the vulgarity and the violence of a disastrous scheme to destabilise the country, but also the capacity for solidarity and community in the face of a total collapse of law and order.” If you need a place to put your fears then talk to friends and family or writing it in a journal can be really helpful (or record notes into an electronic device) about what you fear most and why. Understanding this is helpful. Remain productive and create structure or routine where you can – it helps ease feelings of anxiety.

• Don’t fuel the fire – watch your use of language…

Language is powerful, use matter-of-fact language when describing the challenges either to yourself or anyone else. There is no room for drama here – how we talk about and frame things can influence the outcome. Be very disciplined with yourself about the words you choose – don’t fuel the fire with inflammatory language.

• Develop a plan of action – first things first …

Evaluate what the most important things are to do first in order to remain safe and to reach out and help. Set the rest aside for now. Ask yourself what is within your control? What can you influence? What must you let go of? Be very disciplined and matter-of-fact with your answers and do what you can, let go of what you cannot change.

-Written by Gabi Lowe