In my last article ‘The sun always shines above the clouds – a return to normal or a once in a lifetime opportunity?’ I looked at how striving for a quick return to ‘normal’ from the current Coronavirus crisis could prove to be counterproductive. However, the inability to move forward out of this crisis at all could be equally problematic.
In this article, I examine how we can start to think forward in a positive way and the catalysts that might be needed to achieve that.
Fight, flight or freeze
For people all around the world, the ability to move, work and study in more accustomed ways has been frozen as a result of the virus. However, this freeze hasn’t lasted for a few days; it has lasted for several months and it looks like it will continue to take hold in some shape or form for the foreseeable future. By all accounts, this has been an unprecedented shock to the system.
Ordinarily when humans encounter a threat, the fight or flight mechanism kicks in, allowing us to deal with that threat. But if a threat is too overbearing, we may just shut down altogether and freeze, as a natural way of numbing the pain of the situation.
In some senses, the lockdown that many of the world’s population have had to adhere to is akin to the freeze response kicking in. Not moving, or not moving very far until the threat of the virus starts to dissipate.
Getting out of the freeze
A healthy reaction to a threat passing is to ‘un-freeze’ and quickly shake off any temporary trauma that is still in our body, so that we no longer hold the fear that the threat previously presented. However, if we fail to shake off that trauma, then the effects of that may be felt for months or years, until such time as we learn how to process it and finally shake it out of our system.
The situation the world faces now is not dissimilar in that the ability to move forward with every day life will depend on the collective ability of populations to shake off the temporary impact of current traumatic events and to move forward fearlessly when re-adjusting to life.
However, if that doesn’t happen, it could have wide reaching negative consequences.
Trauma and the ability to function
If trauma isn’t processed fully, its residue can affect the way that we think, communicate, function and behave.
Take the severe trauma of being involved in a serious car accident, for example. Ordinarily before the accident, a person may not have been afraid of driving or being a passenger. However, a serious accident can leave behind unprocessed trauma, which in turn impairs the ability or willingness of a person to drive or be a passenger, because the accident has created an ever-present fear of the future.
If we look at the current Coronavirus situation and the direct and indirect impact that it is having on businesses and livelihoods, the related fears that arise from this could have a similar psychological impact on the ability of people to think and function in a healthy way. In turn, the impact of the shock of the current situation could have a knock on effect on the ability of businesses to perform and for society to remain cohesive, because ultimately this all depends on the overall level of health of populations.
But does it really need to be that way?
Moving forwards – a positive approach to thinking
As the current pandemic subsides, thought will turn to what has happened and how and why it happened. Watch or read any recent news and you’ll see that it already has. Past wars that have left permanent traumatic scars on generations of people have and continue to raise the same type of searching questions.
Whilst thinking of the past provides an opportunity to learn lessons that can bear positive fruit, dwelling on, or thinking in the past sadly provides fertile ground for traumas to take a firmer hold, which in turn, affects our ability to move forward in a healthy and more positive way.
So perhaps a better way forward out of the current crisis is not to think too much about what has happened, but to turn our minds on how to move forward from it positively. Unfortunately we can’t change the past, but we can all play a part in moulding a safer, better and brighter future.
Taking the first steps
The first steps back into a car following an accident can be difficult if we are fearful of being involved in another accident. Similarly, returning to a tennis court after serious injury may cause a previously great player to underperform, if at the back of their mind, they are always worried about the injury recurring.
Overcoming fear can be one of life’s most difficult challenges, particularly if it is based on previously experienced events and the mind repeatedly churns over negative thoughts. However, trying to move forward with fear in your mind is like trying to walk with a handbrake on, constantly pushing against you. At some point the fear will create bigger problems such as over-anxiety and burn out. In recovering from any crisis, it is important to be aware of this.
However, by shifting the focus of our thinking from fear, to how we can get back to carrying out our daily lives and work effectively, it provides us with the opportunity to stop and think about how we can move forward out of this crisis positively and productively. And simply creating the space to think can often open up solutions not previously thought about, or provide the realisation that some, or all of our fears are unnecessary.
Re-learning and new ways of doing
The last few months have been difficult ones, but the fears that have arisen during this crisis are not insurmountable. Fears are ultimately a habit of the mind, but as with all habits, they are capable of being replaced with healthier ones.
Whilst we may all need to adapt and do things differently for a while, this is also a golden opportunity to reconsider the basics of how we live, study and work, to reassess and redefine what is important for society as a whole and to create a more collaborative and healthy minded world. It also offers up the opportunity to focus on the importance of life long learning and the role that it can play in providing opportunities to diversify our skills and ultimately enjoy longer, healthier and more worthwhile careers.
If there is anything this crisis has taught us, it is that we all need each other to survive. To move through this crisis and thrive again, we will all need each other too.