6 Little Things Therapists Do to Stay Calm When Everything Feels Uncertain

Uncertainty is a natural part of life, but it’s easy to feel completely overwhelmed when a lot of unknowns are coming your way at once—like, right about now. Tariffs are being added and subtracted by the hour, causing wild swings in the global economy that could potentially cost you a ton of money. The stock market is tanking, and a ton of people who used to have jobs that seemed stable are now being fired. Plus, you’ve got whatever is happening in your personal life to deal with on top of worrying about a looming economic crisis.

It’s easy to look around and assume everyone else is sailing along just fine when it feels like you’re barely keeping it together. But the reality is that everyone feels the heat when life is unstable—even therapists. “This comes up in almost every therapy session as of late, and something I am dealing with in my daily life right now,” Hillary Ammon, PsyD, a clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety & Women’s Emotional Wellness, tells SELF.

You basically have two options when life is up in the air: Hide out on your couch and pretend like nothing’s wrong, or find new ways to work through the uncertainty. It goes without saying, but the first isn’t really an option—and ultimately, the only way out is through. If it doesn’t feel like this ability to navigate instability comes naturally to you, that’s okay. “We all have to learn to live with uncertainty, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy,” Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinical associate professor at NYU Langone Health and cohost of the Mind in View podcast, tells SELF.

With that in mind, we asked six therapists to share the mental health hacks and habits they personally reach for when uncertainty strikes. From writing sticky notes to thinking about life’s “anchors,” here’s what they swear by.

1. They focus on what they can control.

When the air is thick with uncertainty, it’s easy to assume the outcome will be horrible—and that can quickly make you a bit obsessive. “Uncertainties that cause worry tend to ‘stick,’” Dr. Ammon says. Hello, crushing anxiety!

Whenever she notices that she’s not able to easily shake a worry, Dr. Ammon says she’ll first pause and acknowledge it. “Then, I sit with it for a moment. I try not to push the thoughts or feelings away,” she says. This gives her the mental freedom to actually think about what’s bothering her versus trying to ignore it—which can ultimately put it on your mind even more, she explains. Dr. Ammon then finds it helpful to focus her attention on what’s in her control and to problem-solve the things she actually has the ability to change. It may even help to take it one step further and make an actual list of what’s worrying you and the aspects you can control so that you know what to focus on.

Knowing that she’s done everything she can to be on top of the situations she has power over makes it easier to accept the unpredictable, she says. “By striking this balance, you are telling your brain that you can tolerate uncertainty and trust your future self to be able to handle the possible outcomes you are worried about,” she says. While this won’t wipe every “what if” from your brain, it can make a big difference in helping you focus your energy and let some aspects of *all this* go.

2. They take a walk to clear their minds.

The natural chaos of life can make uncertainty feel even worse, Dr. Gallagher says. That’s why she started making a point of going for regular walks. This allows her to clear her mind, as well as return to basics by simply putting one foot in front of the other. Dr. Gallagher also tries to keep her mind present during these walks to really maximize the experience. “I don’t have my phone out and I don’t listen to music,” she says. “I just connect, observe, and be with my thoughts. It can be really powerful.”

If she’s feeling particularly anxious on a walk, Dr. Gallagher says she’ll focus on taking deep, intentional breaths to bring her mind back to the here and now. Afterward, she always feels more grounded, especially when those walks include observing nature. “I find that I have fewer symptoms of anxiety,” Dr. Gallagher says. “Dialing into your senses can be a really great way to bring yourself back to the present and away from worries about what might happen in the future.”

3. They prioritize getting good sleep.

Lack of sleep can make anxiety worse, which is why logging plenty of time in bed is a priority for Helen Lavretsky, MD, professor-in-residence in the Department of Psychiatry at UCLA. “Good sleep is essential in a stressful situation,” she tells SELF.

In fact, one scientific analysis published last year found that even shorter periods of sleep loss, like staying up an hour or so later than usual, can mess with your ability to feel happy, and it can ramp up anxious feelings. That’s not doing yourself any favors when you’re already grappling with uncertainty.

Of course, telling yourself to get plenty of quality sleep and actually doing it—when you’re stressed out, no less—can be tricky. (And often, hyperfocusing on your shut-eye can be counterproductive and make insomnia worse.) But Dr. Lavretsky has a specific bedtime routine she follows to wind down before bed that helps her calm her mind and drift off despite all the chaos going on around her. “I take a bath with epsom salt,” she says. “It warms my body and prepares me for sleep.” The activity or series of events that get you feeling relaxed and ready to doze off may be different, but the key is finding a pre-sleep ritual that works for you and making it a standard part of your nighttime routine—so that your body and brain both come to know exactly when it’s time to power down.

4. They think about their “anchors.”

Many people crave stability, which can make uncertainty even more jarring, Arianna Galligher, LISW, director of the STAR Trauma Recovery Center and the Gabbe Well-Being Office at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, tells SELF. “But descending into panic or paralysis will help nothing and no one,” she says. That’s why Galligher recommends thinking of things in your life that are consistent, which she calls your “anchors.”

“These anchors will help bring structure to the chaos,” she says. You have a lot of different options to choose from, but Galligher says relationships are a big one for her. “When I start to feel overwhelmed, spending time with the people I care about and practicing being really present with them instead of obsessing about whatever it is I’m upset or worried about offers a great deal of relief,” she says. “Engaging with those I love and trust also creates an opportunity for me to process what’s going on and explore my options for how to move forward in a way that it’s harder to do when the thoughts are just swirling around in my own head. Having a sounding board like that is really helpful sometimes.”

She also tries to focus on living according to her values, another big anchor for her. Galligher says that thinking about what’s most important to her, what she stands for, and the qualities she wants to have as a person can help. “Crystallizing the ‘why’ behind the choices I make helps me feel more confident and in control,” she says.

5. They squeeze in the activities that make them feel good.

“It’s important to keep doing things that matter to you, even when in extended periods of turmoil,” Lindsey C. McKernan, PhD, MPH, associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, tells SELF. That’s why she keeps a sticky note above her desk that lists the five activities that help her feel her best—which she refers to when she’s feeling particularly overwhelmed and needs to bring herself back to center.

The items on her list include things like doing yoga, listening to audiobooks, and cooking. “As a working mother of three young children, I’m not in a place where I can do all of these things at the same time,” Dr. McKernan says. But she tries to inject even little snippets of them into her day—grabbing a few minutes of an audiobook when she can or doing a yoga sequence by her desk during a lunch break—to help lift her mood and make her feel more grounded, even when she’s surrounded by chaos.

6. They lean into routines.

Keeping a sense of structure can be soothing when it feels like everything is up in the air, Nora Brier, PsyD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Penn Medicine, tells SELF. It gives you something to rely on, even when everything else around you seems too unpredictable. For her, a solid morning routine is key for establishing a sense of order in her day: She savors her morning coffee, stretches, and focuses on the rhythm and routine of walking her dog. If things go haywire after that, that period of calm and predictability helps to keep her grounded.

Dr. McKernan also tries to incorporate “guideposts” in her life that feel more routine, like listening to her favorite playlist on the way to work or having a wind-down routine at night. “It is particularly helpful for me to engage in some type of relaxation practice every day, even if it is only for a few minutes before bed,” she says.

Overall, therapists stress that it’s important to remind yourself that you can only do so much when it comes to predicting the future—and that you’ve dealt with this on some level before. “The only constant in life is change and uncertainty. Control is an illusion that helps us all feel better as people,” Dr. Brier says. “This is a good perspective that can feel very freeing.”