U is for Uncertain (Primary)

The brainy bit!

Turns out us humans aren’t too great at dealing with uncertainty - we get scared, we get worried. And when we’re uncertain, our minds can tell us stories, fill in the gaps, make things up

what to do? what to do?

So much in life is uncertain, particularly in these changing times. If, in January, you’d told us how 2020 was going to turn out, we would NOT have believed you!

We think about the future all the time and we sometimes convince ourselves that things are going to go wrong. But check this- the future hasn’t even happened yet so how can we be certain how it will turn out?

Fun things to practice

So how we can help develop our resilience by dealing with uncertainty, here’s some ideas:

1. When we’re feeling sad, worried or uncertain, we sometimes don’t feel like eating or perhaps don’t sleep too well. We might get in arguments with our family and friend or feel really sad and want to cry. We might feel a bit poorly. It’s really important to notice how we’re feeling when there’s lots of changes & uncertainty going on around us. Take a moment, breathe deeply and ask yourself - how am I feeling right now, what am I feeling? Name it if you can? Also remind yourself that our minds tell us stories - ask yourself is this a story, is it just my brain trying to join up the dots? Remind yourself that these are just thoughts and feelings and we’re going to survive all of this.

2. When lots of things are changing, it’s important to remind ourselves that there are still things we can be certain of too. One way do this is to offer to help someone out or Fill Someone’s Bucket - perhaps do a chore at home, help out one of your friends, ask your family if there’s anything you can do to help? This way, by being a bucket-filler, we’re focussing on other people and not focussing so much on how we’re feeling all the time. And what we notice is that by helping others out, it makes us feel better too, we fill up our own buckets

3. Finally, when we develop our resilience, we remind ourselves that we’re not alone, that everyone finds things difficult from time to time. Think of ALL the things in your days, your weeks, when someone has helped you, when something has gone well, when you’ve made choices and it’s worked out, when you’ve succeeded in doing something difficult. Take an moment and draw a picture of all these amazing things that you can be certain of!

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The not-so-small small print

There is none! Simply return to this part of the website daily to get the next part of the practice.. No payment or subscription required. This is a resource we are sharing with all of you through the website and aiming to help our youngsters, in the various stages of their lives. This program contains information and practices that are aimed for two different age groups and we intend to mostly post the primary level information in the morning and the secondary level in the afternoon. Please leave us a comment and let us know how you are getting on or get in touch if you require additional support.

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