2021 is making 2020 look like a walk down Easy Street. I know it’s only been two weeks, but I’m trying to recover from last week’s insurrection in Washington, DC while preparing for this week’s domestic terror threats across all 50 states. I’m deciding between the potential for catching COVID-19 and the possibility of side effects from the vaccine. I’m determining whether it’s better to stay indoors and virus-free or go outside for my daily trip to the gym or yoga studio to maintain my sanity. I’ve opted for outdoor exercise, and I’m trying to balance that between the fickle nature of weather and the demands of self-employment. I’ve opted for at-home yoga, but it’s so easy to be distracted when I’m in my own home. I’ve got issues.

Sometimes I can’t stop watching the news. Sometimes I can’t get a good night’s sleep. I feel like I’m being pulled in a million directions, and it’s only been two weeks.

It’s not just the chaos and negativity that has 2021 feeling like a challenge. We’ve had unbelievable highs as well. I never dreamed both Georgia and the U.S. Senate would flip blue. That amazing high on January 5 was quickly crushed by the insurrection on January 6. Then hope sprang anew when Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were finally certified by congress after the attack on the capitol building. The decision to quickly impeach the chief instigator felt like relief, only to be followed by threats to elected officials who don’t fall in line with our current dictator-in-waiting and his mob of supporters. I’ve never known so much violence and potential for violence in our nation against a backdrop of so much potential. We have our first Black and female vice president for goodness sake! The contrast is downright bipolar.

I say all that to say, sometimes we feel stressed out. Unless we sit down and take an accounting of what’s going on around us, we may not know why. We might just notice we feel uncomfortable or anxious. If you have financial dilemmas or other personal challenges on top of the ones we are all dealing with, you have even more stressors at play.

We can’t work to solve problems unless we first acknowledge them.

Listen, we’re in the middle of a shitstorm.

There, I said it.

We are all stressed out. People of color are even more so because we are the favorite target of hate groups in this country. I would imagine my LGBTQ and Jewish friends are quite concerned too. But, at the end of the day, any thoughtful person who’s been paying attention to this mess has at least a little bit of low-grade agita.

My tips:

1. Be grateful for what you have.

2. Don’t skip your exercise.

3. Take breaks from the news.

4. Do your best to get quality rest.

5. Whether you read a book, take a bath, chant a mantra or do a meditation, make some time for stillness.

I’m here to tell you this too shall pass. 2021 has more goodness in store than grief. More hope than horror. More love than hate. We’ve got this.

I wish you Freedom, Alignment and Effortless Abundance!