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Due to the pandemic, we might find ourselves feeling the pressure of Zoom classes, reminiscing the days when we could go out and hug one another; the days when we didn't hear about the rising COVID cases, and feel this heavyweight in our hearts and minds.
Now, more than ever, we might feel stuck in these dark times, making it easy to become pessimistic and to lose hope, feeling like nothing is in our control. When we lose hope, we must remind ourselves that there is always light in times of darkness, even when we cannot see it. Here are three reasons why we should establish hope in our daily lives.
1. Self-Motivation
Every day I go through the same routine, I stare at my laptop to do my homework and attend Zoom classes. There are days when I wake up, exhausted, and overwhelmed with the amount of work, that all I want to do is stay in bed. When this happens, it becomes easy to feel unmotivated and anxious about how my work will turn out or what grade I will get. I lose hope.
When we feel overwhelmed and the pressure, this can affect our productivity and our mental health. Being pessimistic or worrying too much is not healthy, and when we get stuck in this headspace, sometimes, it can be hard to get out of our heads.
Every day, once we wake up, we should always think about what we are looking forward to. By thinking about this, it makes it easier to motivate ourselves and smile. When I did this recently, I found myself being more productive, doing my work efficiently and enjoying it.
2. Move Forward, Don’t Think about the Past Too Much
I love being at home, but there are days where I worry about every single thing. Sometimes I even catch myself ruminating over past mistakes, worrying about them. It makes me have this heavy feeling in my heart, leading me to sulk in emotions and eventually stuck in that headspace. At times, I ask myself, "when will things get better?"
At the moment, it does not feel like things will get better, which can make you feel down even more. Not only does this affect how you think, but how you perform. You might not believe it at the time, but the truth is, things will get better. It just takes time.
When hope is present in our lives, it allows us to let our light shine the brightest. Hope reminds us to accept and learn from our mistakes and to move on. We remember that we are not the same person we were a month or year ago. More importantly, it lifts our spirits during difficult times.
3. Peace of Mind
When we are stressed, there are times where we tell ourselves to take a break. But do we always do this? I know that I don't, especially when I am busy or procrastinating my homework.
If you are overly stressed or having nightmares about the homework, stop what you are doing and take a couple of minutes or even hours for yourself. For me, this is your mind telling you that you are tired and need a break to relieve all the stress you have. Trust me, from experience, staying on your laptop for hours and staring at your homework can make you even more worried. You can begin to overthink and even doubt yourself, which is something you don't want.
When we feel relaxed, become more optimistic, and have hope, we see things more clearly. We enjoy ourselves more and remember that we are always enough and that what matters is that we tried our best. This can give us peace of mind, knowing that we did our best and that we should be proud no matter what happens. If we made mistakes, all we have to do is learn from them. After all, it is part of the process.
Ultimately, having hope allows us to see that there is always light, even during the bleakest time. It relieves us of stress and worries and can help us become the person we want to be. Lastly, with hope by our side, we remember that we have a bright future ahead, even with the bumps along the way.