Divorce is rarely simple or easy. In fact, it’s often complicated, messy, and filled with challenges. For most people, it’s the single most stressful event they’ll ever go through. While there is no way to take the stress and anxiety out of divorce, there are ways that you can handle those emotions and prevent them from affecting you quite so much.
Find Someone to Talk To
One of the most effective ways to combat stress and anxiety about your divorce is to have someone to talk to about it. This could be a friend or a family member, but that’s not always a great idea. You need someone who will do more than just agree with you and commiserate on how bad your ex is. You may want to consider going to a therapist. A therapist is a great option to not only have someone to talk to, but someone that is professionally trained to help you to deal with your stress and anxiety.
Realize You’re Going to Grieve
No matter what the reason for the divorce, you will grieve the loss of the relationship. Understand this from the beginning. There is no shame in feeling grief for your loss. There is also no preset duration for feeling sad or coping with that loss. It takes as long as it takes, and will likely affect you for longer than you expect.
Find a Creative Outlet
Going through a divorce probably doesn’t make you want to take up salsa dancing, but there is a lot of good that can come from finding a creative outlet of some type. Yes, taking dancing lessons might be the trick. However, you might also appreciate taking an art class, learning how to sing, exploring the world of photography, and so much more. Creative endeavors help you fight stress and anxiety in your life and release feel-good endorphins, lifting your mood and helping you feel better.
Understand the Legal Process Can be a Long Process
Many times clients feel a lot of anxiety and stress because they feel that the legal process is taking too long or they do not understand why certain things are happening.
You can help to deal with this anxiety by understanding that the legal process can be a very long process. There are many things that are out of your control and the control of the lawyers. For instance, the court staff is in charge of when a hearing gets set and all the lawyers on the case have to be available on the day and time that the court staff sends out possible dates for hearings. Another example is that courts many times schedule multiple cases at the same time and your case may get bumped to a different day.
Think about the Positive Outcomes
Divorce is trying, stressful, and difficult. It’s negative. Combat that and the added anxiety in your life by thinking about a positive future. What do you want to do when everything is settled? Will you travel? Will you buy a new home? What shape will your new adventure take? Focus on those positive goals and plans and you’ll feel your anxiety slowly reduce to something more manageable.
In the end, stress and anxiety are part and parcel of divorce. There’s no way to eliminate them. However, there are some simple, effective ways to fight back and to reclaim your peace of mind.
