The Only Constant in Life Is Change. Change is stressful for all of us. The most recent and life changing example is the Covid19 pandemic that was filled with uncertainty, fear, struggle and loss. It is therefore no surprise to find that, in general, people are finding it difficult to cope with change.
For students, it was about transitioning through their higher education, their education abroad, internships. For couples, it was their wedding. For working professionals, it was a loss of job or loss of a promotion. None of us exactly know how to cope with the fallout from this unprecedented situation.
A milestone is a significant event in your life. Often a milestone marks the start of a new chapter. For example, the day you graduated from high school, your first paycheck or even reaching a big sales target.
Psychologically, all milestones are important because they are intrinsically meaningful for human beings.
“When something that we have been looking forward to just disappears, it can bring on feelings of great disappointment and sadness.”
If you’ve had to miss a milestone or anticipated event, here are five ways to ease the pain:
Grieve without guilt: We tell ourselves things like, I feel sad, but I shouldn’t feel that; other people have it worse, but it’s your responsibility to feel your sadness and fear and anger whether or not someone else is feeling something.
Feel all your feelings: It is completely okay to feel disappointment and frustration and these feelings may also lead to feelings of anxiety and fear. The most important thing to know is that it’s okay to feel each and every feeling.
Reach Out: Postponing a big milestone can surely affect your emotional wellbeing. Reach out to your support system to get help working through your feelings. Talk to someone you trust, it could be a family member, a friend or even a therapist. It is important to release those feelings.
Adapt positive coping mechanisms: In life, we all have to deal with loss and disappointment. Learning skills like mindfulness meditation or deep breathing and relaxation can help to contain anxiety and worry.
Practice acceptance: Acceptance is the final stage of grief, after anger and sadness. It’s the feeling of “‘This is happening. Now I need to figure out how to proceed’.
Though it may be difficult because of all of the unknowns, staying positive and looking toward the future is important. Be sure to maintain a healthy and productive routine, as it can help to stabilize the days and establish some sense of control.
But more than anything, remember that there is no one-size-fits-all timetable for when you should hit a milestone, whatever age you may be.
At Anantam, we guide you not only in coping up with missed milestones but also in achieving your milestones in the first place, by exploring the right path to reach there. To know about the #lifecoaching services we offer.