Conflict—within a country or between countries—can cause widespread anxiety and feelings of helplessness, especially when it escalates to threats or actual armed conflict. Compounding the emotional effect of international tension is the constant access to the news through smartphones and other technology, often amplified by social media. It can feel like there's no escape from jarring and disturbing headlines.
In a leader town hall on February 28, Intermountain president and CEO Marc Harrison shared, “Like all of you, I'm hoping for peace and an end to the suffering that we're seeing in the Ukraine right now. I recognize that this could be stressful to you, to your teams, to your families. I'm going to ask you as I always do to please take care of yourself and please take care of each other.”
How can you manage your anxiety in times of national and international tension, while also remaining engaged in positive ways? Here are some tips from the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) about how to stay aware and involved while also taking care of yourself:
Stay informed, but set boundaries on your news intake. Limit your access to certain times/stations. Research issues that matter to you, instead of waiting for news to come to you.
Get involved. Find opportunities to volunteer in your community or for a cause you care deeply about or engage in small acts of kindness to neighbors or people in need.
Take a long-term perspective. When you find yourself caught up in anxiety about today's news, think back to other contentious times and the progress that has been made from generation to generation.
Seek calm in your community, mindfulness, faith, or nature. Turn to your circle of supportive friends, practices like mindfulness and meditation, or your faith. Time in nature can also help you remove yourself from the turbulence that is causing stress.
“When I am feeling particularly anxious and my mind is really spinning, I use this informal compassion exercise by reciting these three phrases: ‘May you (you, I, or we) be free from suffering. May you be free from fear and anger. May you find happiness and peace.’ Sometimes I repeat these phrases multiple times a day to ground myself,” says Marc Potter, EAP counselor and coordinator for mindfulness-based programming.
Click here to listen to a special guided mindfulness exercise with Marc Potter.
Take care of yourself. “Remember to focus on what you can control, your sphere of influence. Energy spent on things out of your control tends to not be good use of energy,” says Matt Steinkamp, EAP director.
For example, take time to enjoy family and friends. Get enough sleep. Eat a healthy diet. Be physically active. Engage in activities that give you pleasure and absorb your full attention. Find ways to laugh. Avoid ineffective and potentially harmful coping mechanisms.
Care for one another. Check on your coworkers if they appear distressed. You don’t have to weigh in on the events, simply give them your loving presence and empathy. Make space for them to share how they are feeling, respond with empathy and commit to following up with them at a later time to ensure they are okay.
And don’t forget, feeling compassion for both sides is normal. “Compassion is the desire to relieve someone else’s suffering—and it’s big enough to hold all suffering on both sides of an issue. As Intermountain caregivers, we may have coworkers who are from Ukraine or Russia or have family or friends from these areas. We can recognize that both suffer. We can acknowledge our own emotional suffering. We can offer the wish that all sides, including ourselves, experience freedom from suffering, fear, and anger and find peace and happiness,” Marc Potter says. “Sometimes all we can do is offer our best thoughts to those suffering. This can help relieve our own anxiety and keep our hearts open, supple, and ready to respond in a skillful manner.”
“If you’re struggling, please reach out to EAP or other mental health providers to get the support you need. We are here to help you,” says Matt.
Resources
- Call the Behavioral Health Navigation Line to learn about mental health resources available to you: 833-442-2211.
- Schedule an appointment with EAP: 801-442-3509, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., MST.
- Join a CARE session, offered Monday through Friday. No registration is required. Learn more.
- Intermountain offers several ways for caregivers to engage with mindfulness and meditation, from Mindfulness Moments accessed through Vocera to four-hour Mindfulness in Medicine retreats. Find Intermountain’s other meditation and mindfulness resources here.