When Life is Like a Perpetual Hangover
It’s rare that natural disasters impact multiple millions of people across large swaths of the U.S. all at the same time, but it’s happening now. Untold hundreds of thousands if not millions of individuals are now living with devastating results of Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and enormous, destructive fires. Whether life has become consumed with gutting a home and tossing a lifetime’s worth of flooded possessions, with hauling off downed trees and fixing roofs, or completely rebuilding or moving altogether, it’s as bad as the worst hangover ever. When a hangover won’t go away, after all, life totally sucks. There is a lot to deal with right now, and it helps to have a strategy for dealing. Some helpful tips are below.
Help to Survive the Toughest of Times
It may seem trivial, but it’s really true that misery loves company. Americans going through it are certainly not alone. Knowing that you aren’t being singled out to be picked on by the universe is comforting, especially when you are in the most difficult position of having lost all of your worldly possessions, often including vehicles not covered by the appropriate insurance. So what is a person to do? Here are some tips for getting through a continuing series of long, crappy, difficult days:
- You can take comfort in knowing that things will get better. Futures even tend to get brighter after going through dark times. Spend some time envisioning your beautiful future, which you will eventually get to, as long as you keep on motivating yourself to move forward.
- Don’t allow yourself to get bogged down in regret, blame, or guilt for any reason. Also, don’t consider yourself to have the worst kind of luck. Each of us ultimately shapes our own destiny. Make those lemons into delicious, sweet lemonade. Remember that rarely does a person become truly great without going through some kind of deep, dark pit. On a crucial level, you are now fully qualified for greatness!
- “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” according to Friedrich Nietzsche, famous German philosopher. It’s not fun to go through excruciatingly painful times, but the result can be some type of personal growth and greater strength. Maintaining a positive attitude may be required.
- There are people in the world who can benefit from your story. Before you went through all of this misery, you may not have had a lot to say that would really make the world sit up and take notice. But now you almost surely do!
Just Keep Swimming, as Dory Would Say
When you have a “hangover,” thinking of Dory, Nemo’s forgetful friend, may not seem like a great idea. But if you’re having one tough day after another, you may find encouragement from the advice Dory’s parents gave her: “Just keeping swimming.” You’ll eventually get to the other side, to better days, right along with your persevering neighbors.
