The Mindful and Brain-friendly Approach to the Current Crisis

Stay home, wash your hands, sneeze in your sleeve, keep a safe distance. We know the new coronavirus codex of responsible behavior. But one thing is to tackle the biological virus, another is to cope with the mental viruses — the related thoughts causing significant suffering and unease. Having a mindful and brain-friendly approach cannot stop the virus, but it can help you feel better and improve your choice making and action-taking.

The virus SARS-CoV-2 causes the disease COVID-19. This simple fact leads to incredible distress, discomfort, and disturbance all over the world. From cases with no symptoms to cases with fatal outcomes. Since the virus is new to humans, our immune system is not prepared for it. Many will get the disease, hitting harder if you are elderly or have an impaired immune system. We cannot expect a vaccine within the next year or so. Furthermore, the virus outbreak has become a pandemic that threatens the global economy. Right now, we get sick, scared and worried.

Governments and authorities worldwide have taken radical initiatives to contain the virus and delay its spread. For two main reasons: to ensure proper treatment for everybody in need, and to protect our sources of wealth and health; the businesses and institutions. Loads of information are produced and distributed continuously to inform us and regulate our behavior. We get confused, overwhelmed, and even more concerned.

This is not brain-friendly at all. As you might guess, the human brain wants things to be as easy, fun and rewarding as possible. A crisis is the direct opposite. It drains the brain and body of energy and makes it difficult to engage in more pleasant and meaningful activities. It can put us in a situation where we see no immediate way out. Some may even start to feel depressed and hopeless.

If we allow it to happen. If we don’t use the power, we have to be mentally aware and behave consciously. If we don’t realize, we create our own experience and in many ways our own reality. As individuals, we can choose what to focus on and what to ignore. As collectives, we can work together to improve the life quality of each individual and ensure speedy societal and financial recovery.

Let me share with you five ways to become more mindful and brain-friendly in your approach to crisis in general.

1. Calm down

Your first reaction to any new situation is emotional. From already learned patterns, you sort the incoming information into contrasting categories: safe or dangerous, good or bad, like or dislike, relevant or irrelevant — trying to guess how it will influence your chances of survival and success, now and in the near future.

News about an unknown potentially deadly virus will frighten most of us and push our mode towards survival, meaning we have only a few alternatives to choose from: fight, flee or freeze. Since the enemy is invisible and contagious, it’s hard to fight against. We try to escape it physically and ignore it mentally. Both strategies are nearly impossible to execute when in survival mode. The situation is too alarming.

Try this. The first step to turn an emotional reaction into a mindful response is to become aware of the possibility and decide to calm down. The second step is to breathe deeply and slowly until the nervous system shifts from breaking down to building up. This will automatically expand the scope of mind and dramatically slow down the speed of thought. The third step is to accept the situation and embrace what is. Let go to let come. The fourth step is to focus on what’s important to do now and what can wait until later.

2. Adapt fast

In a crisis, efficient energy management becomes essential. Your brain and body need energy to make high-quality responses. Don’t waste energy on fighting against circumstances that cannot be changed. The faster you can accept them, the better. Ignorance, rejection, and resistance are natural first reactions to an emerging crisis. But as soon as the situation is understood, the adaptation should start. "Better act now than be sorrow tomorrow," seems the proper attitude.

When information is sparse, you react unconsciously, often from experience. In a crisis of potentially catastrophic proportions, it is important not to waste energy on being confused or worried. We need reliable information. It is crucial to have an open dialog between the authorities and the population. Otherwise, false rumors and fake news take over, which will only worsen the situation.

To adapt quickly, we need to prepare well. That's why we do emergency drills, and organizations invest in risk analysis and crisis management. If you live in a society or work in a company with a strong and controlled crisis response, you can tap into it and save energy for helping yourself and others. Fast choice making works better when you have well-known alternatives to choose from.

3. Reach out

In stressful situations, our focus becomes narrow and shortsighted. We want to protect ourselves and our close relations. It’s a common human reaction, and we should neither feel shameful about it nor blame others for showing such behavior. A crisis has the potential to activate the best and the worst in us, from helping strangers to hoarding toilet paper in the supermarkets.

Closing down is the first reaction to the crisis. Reaching out — either to offer help or to ask for help — should be the next step. It’s human. Being in the same situation and facing the same challenge forcefully unites us. Realizing we are in the same boat, on the same globe, fighting against the same enemy makes us open to compassionate actions.

Right now, citizens are asked to isolate themselves and keep a safe distance when outside their homes. Being in quarantine can be unpleasant for many reasons. We feel cut off from our normal life and have endless time to worry about what will happen. Of course, we also have the opportunity to spend more time with loved ones, to deepen our knowledge in new areas, and to think about life as such.

In a period where we cannot meet physically, we can meet virtually. No wonder, we witness an explosion in online meetings. Apps like Zoom, GoToMeeting, Google Hangout Shift, and Microsoft Teams offer easy access to meeting many people without having to physically meet them. If you are unfamiliar with this, you will soon be, since this is the 2020 way of meeting.

The virus outbreak dominates the traffic and themes on social media. You find all kinds of communities, interest groups, and commented news streams. Suddenly, we are not surprised to be invited to virtual coffee meetings, Friday bars, receptions, concerts — even fairs. Humans are creative, and luckily we have the virtual world available to us.

4. Lighten up

When life takes dark turns, it is natural to feel bad. Allow yourself to have fearsome thoughts and negative emotions. But don’t get too attached to them. You can’t keep thoughts from coming — they appear out of nowhere. What you can do is choose which thoughts to focus on, and give energy.

This is your open door to influence. In all awake and aware moments, you can choose how to relate to the information you receive. Being positive or negative is a choice you can take deliberately, even during hard times. The thoughts you repeatedly pay attention to and engage in will continue to come back, eventually turning into new beliefs and attitudes. What you look for is what you will find. Why not mirror the light?

Try this. The brain has the drive to move away from perceived danger and towards an anticipated reward. Here and now away motivation is the strongest, as it is correlated with the release of powerful survival hormones. Over time, motivation towards works better, as it is associated with the release of hormones, fostering creativity and collaboration. Spend a few minutes — alone or with another person — to list at least 20 positive things about the current situation. Then make another list with things you look forward to doing in the future.

5. Be grateful

One last idea to leave you with is to practice gratefulness. Looking for good signs and spotting them serve as positive feedback to the brain and body. Even the smallest relief or progress will do. Gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness — also in touch times. Being grateful is related to the release of dopamine and endorphins. It makes you feel better and in more harmony with the surrounding life.

Try this. You can shift your attention away from toxic emotions by writing someone a gratitude letter. It will do you well, even without sending it. Another thing you can do is imagine a time in the future where the crisis is over and life has normalized. Create a vivid mental picture of the celebration with all the details. Feel the gratitude of still being alive and healthy with the people you love around you. Re-create this positive inner picture and the associated emotion several times during the day. Let it become a habit. This will ensure higher production of the so-called happiness hormones and prepare your brain and body for the good times to come.

A crisis is like a wildfire or a storm. It brings danger and risk of terrible losses, but also new conditions and fantastic opportunities. By applying a mindful and brain-friendly approach, you can keep a positive inner state and respond more balanced to what happens during the crisis. It may last longer than we imagine — but it will be over before we know it.

Stay safe and enjoy it all.