Ask Janine: How Can I Help Myself & My Family Cope With the Current World Situation?

By Janine Wirth.

Dear Janine,

I feel so low. Just when I thought things were finally getting back to normal after the pandemic lockdowns, Russia invaded the Ukraine.

My parents are from the Ukraine, and watching this unfold on the news has us all in tears for days. My mother hasn't gotten out of bed in 2 days, and I'm scared this is getting worse. My father says this brings back so many memories he never wanted to have again.

I need advice on how to cope.

Best,

Maryna

Dear Maryna,

The entire world has gone into shock at what is unfolding daily in Ukraine. Who would've thought that in 2022 we would see an active war in Europe?

So, first off, I recommend limiting your exposure, which means watching as little news as possible.

Being an empath myself, I stopped watching the news every day several years ago as I realised that it was just too much negativity daily. I know that the critical events will reach me on social media, so I don't feel that I'm uninformed or missing any vital information.

Seeing the horrific scenes, hearing gunfire, screaming, crying etc., can trigger PTSD flashbacks, such as you describe your father having. These are often accompanied by dissociation, whereby it can feel like the person is losing touch with their surroundings or even themselves.

I made the mistake of watching quite a lot of news on the weekend. By Tuesday, I was absolutely exhausted from being in tears every day to the point that I needed to take a day off and bring my dysregulated nervous system back into alignment.

This meant a complete digital detox for 24 hours and finding ways to soothe myself, such as long baths, meditation, listening to a guided relaxation hypnosis audio and focusing on feeling inner peace, because besides donating and protesting, there is nothing I can do.

To help your parents and yourself, it's essential to learn some tricks that we refer to as grounding techniques to help create a connection to the present moment. I'm going to give you one for all of the five senses, so you can start with whatever is most accessible in the moment and go through them all if needed.

The easiest is sight: Look at your surroundings and start identifying any colours you see. What furniture or objects can you identify.

Touch: you want to feel something, so I recommend wearing an elastic band on your wrist that you can lightly snap. Holding an ice block will help you focus on the present if you have access to ice.

Sound: start playing loud music that can't be ignored, or create a playlist of soothing nature sounds.

Taste: something sour like lemon or something intense like fresh ginger is best. Lemon flavoured hard-boiled sweets could be the most practical option to carry around.

Smell: it needs to be something potent like strong peppermint or something very pleasant like lighting vanilla scented candles.

Unfortunately, the truth is that horrific things happen worldwide every day, and often the only helpful thing we can do to show support is to donate either money, supplies or our time. Knowing that we are doing our best to contribute somehow helps us feel less powerless when the powers that be get irrational and let their egos drive their decisions.

Sending you, your family and everyone involved personally or watching this horror play out so much love.

 Janine Wirth, is the proud founder of Path to Healing Therapy and Coaching. Her mission is to help female entrepreneurs heal their emotional baggage, heal unresolved emotional trauma and PTSD without spending years in therapy and create spectacular business success for themselves. You may have read her story in The Spotlight and if so you’ll know why she’s so passionate about her work so when she got the opportunity to work alongside The Female CEO and provide a monthly question and answer she was thrilled! 

You can read all about Janine and her work here or catch up socially on Facebook or LinkedIn