Happy New Year and Happy Birthday to Genew colleagues in Dec 2020

In Dec Happy New Year and Happy Birthday to Genew colleagues.

How to Manage Your New-Year Expectations - By Courtney Rubin

Ah, New Year's Eve is fast approaching, and it's finally time to leave the wreckage of 2020 behind. Except for many people, it seems as if not much will change except the year on the calendar. If you're wondering how to emotionally prepare for the months ahead - and maybe even find some joy in the coming season - here's some advice.

Stay in the moment.

Endurance sports psychology tells us that the body is capable of far more than the brain believes. If someone had told you in March how long the pandemic would last, would you have thought you could handle it? So focus on the moment, not the big picture.

Anxiety comes from casting yourself into the future, but "if you keep your energy in the present moment, and you're not contemplating how many more miles you have, it can feel easy at times," said Jo Daniels, an author on a study about what causes anxiety and depression in lockdown.

How do you stay in the moment? When you're feeling overwhelmed, think only about what you need to do to get through the next hour or the next day - not the next week or the next month.

Dr. Daniels' pandemic study found negative coping strategies - like repeatedly overeating and excess drinking - had more of an impact on people's levels of anxiety and distress than more positive coping strategies, like seeking support. "The message is, 'Try to do the good things, but definitely don't do the bad things," Dr. Daniels said.