Struggling In Life? Try these 15 Things to Help

We all have times when we feel that life is against us, throwing challenge after challenge at us and putting obstacles in our way.

When you encounter setbacks in life, it’s so easy to lose yourself in all the problems, stress and anxiety. However, it’s important to remember that no matter how hopeless you feel, you will be able to overcome these struggles. This isn’t a permanent stage of your life, it will pass. Know that you are strong enough to deal with whatever life throws at you.

Here we discuss some important things that you can do to help when you feel like you are struggling in life. These tips come from https://tickledthink.com/15-things-to-do-when-youre-struggling-in-life/.

1. Breathe

When you face challenges, stress and anxiety can easily pile up causing you to feel overwhelmed. In these moments it’s so important to slow down, stop, and allow yourself to breathe. 

You can do this by closing your eyes and taking a few slow, deep breaths. 

Imagine that when you inhale, you are breathing in strength, happiness and hope. When exhaling, imagine you are exhaling the stress and anxiety.

2. Create a list and make a plan

Sometimes life’s problems can seem insurmountable.

Make a list of things that need to be done, your goals and the actions needed to achieve those goals and these positive steps will stop you feeling overwhelmed 

Firstly, work out where you want to be in life, then determine your priorities, and then the goals you want to achieve. Then make a list of the actions you need to do to achieve your goals and match up your actions with your priorities. 

It also helps to break down any big tasks into smaller tasks. This will help avoid stress and procrastination. 

3. You are good enough

When you’re struggling you may feel like you aren’t good enough or deserving of love and happiness. This isn’t true and it’s important to remember that everyone goes through difficult times and that any mistakes you have made don’t diminish your value. You are good enough, just as you are. Everyone makes mistakes, fails and makes bad decisions, they do not define you as a person. You are capable and good enough to overcome these struggles and will learn and grow as a person as you do.

4. Avoid too much complaining

When you are going through a lot it’s easy to focus on the bad things. It can be hard to not complain about everything. And while complaining can be therapeutic, too much complaining can have the opposite effect.  Complaining too much can cause more stress and make you focus on all the bad and negative things, resulting in you feeling worse.

5. Take responsibility 

During hard times it is easy to shift the blame onto others when things go wrong in your life. Unfortunately, this does nothing but prevent you from moving forward and taking responsibility for your own decisions and actions. If you don’t acknowledge and accept the part you play in your own destiny you will never make the changes required in order for you to move forward and improve your life.

It’s your choice whether to stay blaming others or to start taking responsibility and start moving forward, healing and improving your life for the better. 

6. Don’t bottle up feelings

You may think that the easiest way to get through times of struggle is to set your feelings aside and bottle up your emotions. However, stifling your emotions is not a good idea as they can show themselves later, often with much worse consequences.

Feeling your emotions and being vulnerable are signs of strength, not weakness. The only way to truly heal and move forward in life is to acknowledge and accept your feelings. This may be difficult at first, but it will get easier.

7. Let go of bad habits

Holding on to toxic habits makes it harder to overcome your struggles. One of the first steps in working towards a struggle free life is to let go of bad habits that are keeping you in an unhappy and or destructive cycle. Establish what those habits are and take steps to help change them.

Here are some more tips on breaking bad habits https://www.cota.com.au/how-to-break-bad-habits/

Start with baby steps and small changes. Be consistent and don’t give up and soon you will notice the benefits of removing your bad habits from your life. 

8. Remember that now is not forever

It’s easy to lose hope and resign yourself to the fact that things won’t get better when you are struggling.

Remember that this isn’t true and that tough times never last. The struggles that you are experiencing now are not permanent. Have trust that things will get better for you. There is hope and light at the end of the tunnel.  

9. Be kind to yourself

Stop being so hard on yourself. It only makes things worse if you are constantly criticising and putting yourself down. Instead of being a self-critic, be kind and support yourself. Celebrate you wins, big and small. Be proud of yourself for making changes, taking responsibility, making good choices and all the positive things you are doing to help yourself to move forward.

10. Keep going

When things aren’t working out it can be easy to feel discouraged and disappointed and just give up.  

If you give up straight away, you will not be helping yourself. As hard as it may be, remember to keep going and keep trying. Things will change for the better if you persevere.

11. Know that you are strong and brave

Life is hard! There will always be ups and downs and these will test every ounce of strength in you. You may think that you will never be able to overcome this or get through this, but you will.

Remind yourself that you the have strength and courage to get you through life’s struggles and challenges. You are a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for. 

12. Live one day at a time

When you are faced with struggle after struggle it’s easy to let your destructive thoughts take over, including the “what ifs” and constantly worrying about the future. Take one day at a time and live in the present moment. Slow down, breathe and take each day as it comes. 

Dwelling on the past or worrying about the future won’t help but focussing on the present and what you can do today will.

13. Don’t expect instant gratification

In this day and age we are often guilty of constantly wanting instant gratification. We want and expect things to be easy and fast. In times of hardship, this mindset will only lead to more disappointment. 

Expecting things to work out instantly will only lead to frustration. Remind yourself that it may take some time for things to get better. Be patient and keep taking the steps needed to improve your situation every day. 

14. Change your mindset

When you’re struggling it’s easy to focus all your attention entirely on the negative. Doing this can cause unnecessary worry, stress and anxiety. It can make overcoming your struggles even harder. 

Try reframing your mindset and focus on appreciating all the good things every day. This positive approach will reap rewards.

Learn more about positive thinking here – https://www.cota.com.au/how-to-think-positively-and-improve-your-life/

15. You are loved, and you are not alone

It can be easy to feel hopeless, alone, and isolated in hard times. It may seem as though others have their whole life figured out and that you are the only one struggling. This is not the case. The reality is that everyone struggles in life at times, we all go through tough times. You are not alone, so don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Remember that you are loved and that there are many people that are there for you.  

Don’t be afraid of difficult times, failures, mistakes, and disappointments. These experiences are opportunities for growth and learning. Facing up to adversity can help you become the best possible version of yourself. We will not grow and learn if we only experience the good things in life.

Life’s challenges allow us to unlock our full potential and grow into the person that we were meant to be. You will come out the other side stronger, braver, and wiser. 

Interested in similar articles? Why not check these out:

The power of positive thinking

The benefits of more time outdoors

Coping with change

Source: https://tickledthink.com/15-things-to-do-when-youre-struggling-in-life/ .