Coping Strategy

When you have suffered a brain injury you have many challenges to overcome. The challenges of coping with a changed life and a changed body are greatly demanding for the person concerned.

He or she has to learn to manage the altered relationships with partner and family.
Everything we do with our thoughts or feelings to deal with or avoid illness, problems, or stress is called a coping strategy or coping mechanism.

Active coping strategy versus passive coping strategy

A passive coping strategy may seem tempting as temporary comfort, but it postpones the problem.

It causes you to have problems later in other areas.
An example is starting to use drugs or trying to get drunk just to forget everything. That will not do your body any good.

A passive coping strategy is negative for you and for your relationships with others.
With an active coping strategy you address the problem.

Examples of passive coping strategies

Retreating to:

• Food: Comfort eating to feel better, snacking and binge eating, quick bites; junk food
• Alcohol: Drinking to forget your problems, having alcohol as a friend.
• Drugs: Substance abuse, tobacco, soft and hard drugs.
• Buying: Comfort buying. Constantly feeling the urge to buy something because it makes you happy for a moment.
• Social obesity: Being online more often than is good for you. Being online is actually being offline because you are absent. It takes away time for yourself, to feel.

Denying that there is a problem: You bury your head in the sand, ignore everything, and pretend there is no problem. You hope the problem will go away on its own.

Humor: Laughing everything off and making fun of it. Humor can be a positive coping strategy if you also try to see the bright side. But if you don't want to be serious because the problem feels too painful, then humor isn't solving the problem; you're just laughing it off.

Avoidance: You keep yourself occupied with various things: sleeping, watching TV or movies, gaming, exercise addiction, sex addiction, shopping addiction, games, social media, including chats, etc.

Blaming: You blame others and thus avoid facing the problem. You push back. You take it out on others. You criticize others or you blame yourself.

Stubbornness: You want the problem to be solved your way and don't listen to anyone else's advice.

Procrastination: You keep putting things off or never get around to it. Subconsciously, you hope that procrastination will lead to cancellation.

Revenge-seeking: Seeking revenge, being sarcastic, using threatening language, or making physical threats.

Tantrums: Expressing anger, yelling, swearing, throwing or breaking things, taking it out on vulnerable people or animals, or driving recklessly.

Worrying: Your thoughts keep going around in circles and you don't get anywhere.

Fighting to the limit because you never learned anything other than survive: Some people who have learned from a young age to fight for everything and never give up may go to extremes to ensure they can keep doing everything, despite the limitations. Until they're completely exhausted.

Examples of active coping strategies

Problem solving: looking for solutions, brainstorming, and proactively tackling them. Consider the steps you can take to address the problem. Actively engage with it. Consider the problem from all angles and, if necessary, break it down into smaller, more manageable problems. See what you can do with the smaller problem components.

Anticipation: Prepare, where possible, for what might happen before the situation arises.

Asking for help: Ask others for help (to an appropriate extent). Use the knowledge, skills, and expertise of others when needed. Listen to and/or accept advice.

Think about difficult situations, moments that negatively impact your mood, so you can recognize them in time. Then you can discuss them with those around you and express what you need to feel better.

Expression: Cope with and express emotions through humor, meditation, prayer, art, or music. Try to find words for what's going on in your mind.

Acceptance: Acceptance of the situation, and acceptance of the (negative) emotions that sometimes accompany it. In this context, we're not talking about acceptance of the brain injury, because that's a process of grieving and living loss that may come in waves, but about acceptance of the problems that sometimes arise in life. Consider the problem from all angles.

Seek social support: Talk about your emotions and vent. It's best to find someone you can be completely yourself with. This could even be an outpatient counselor or another professional.

Humor: Laugh and joke, looking for the "lighter" side. Humor can also be a negative coping strategy if you laugh everything off.

Planning: Set goals, make plans, try out deadlines to address your problem. "I'll give myself three weeks to..."

Put it in perspective: Don't jump to conclusions. See the good in a situation as well.

Time: Use time wisely. Try to get things done.

Self-confidence: Believe in what you've achieved so far. You can also acknowledge your strengths.

Have realistic expectations: This means knowing your limits or wanting to learn to know your limits. Don't push yourself too hard. If you don't reach your goal, that's okay, but adjust your goals accordingly.

Seeking relaxation or meaningful activity during times of stress and problems

If you are dealing with the problem in measured doses, it is also good to seek distraction in measured doses.

Examples:

• Hobbies: Perhaps painting, crafting, walking, swimming, cycling, doing puzzles, making music, writing poetry, or collecting something offers a temporary relaxation.

• Music: listening to music, making music, (learning to) play an instrument. Or even playing digital musical instruments through a Digital Workstation (DAW). This is computer software for processing music. Along with VST instruments. VSTi stands for Virtual STudio instrument. This allows you to play violin, guitar, or thousands of instruments (often free) using your computer and a small MIDI keyboard. MIDI: Musical Instrument Digital Interface. The keyboard must have a MIDI output to connect to your computer.

• Escape: Go to a place of comfort. Otherwise, imagine a place, try praying, daydreaming, or even trying to sleep.

• Play: Do something fun, play a game, or try solving a puzzle.

• Relax: When you are physically able, try to take a warm bath? Try abdominal breathing. Listen to soothing music.

• Eat healthily: Try to eat regularly and healthily.

• Find meaning, work, or volunteering: See if you can do something meaningful or productive. Think about what would fit within your capabilities and put your strengths to good use. Philosophize about the positive aspects of life. Perhaps the problem in your life could be turned around by helping people or animals with what brought you comfort.

• Learning: Perhaps you can take a course, read up on a specific topic, join a (digital) club like a forum or Facebook group. Start something new.

• Exercise and movement: Try to find something that works for you: walking, jogging, swimming, dancing, going to the gym, or participating in a sport within your physical and cognitive capabilities.

• Loved ones: Try to spend time with loved ones. You might even make new friends. Try to share your thoughts about the problem openly and vulnerably (in measured ways).

• Consider your assertiveness: Do you dare to express your feelings honestly? Do you dare to say no? Do you dare to set your boundaries? Haven't you done this before in your life? Then it may be wise to explore ways to practice and learn this.

Help from an occupational therapist

An occupational therapist is the foundation for optimal balance!

Occupational therapists can support you in becoming aware of your new coping mechanisms and in the search for new balance...

• Balance between workload and capacity: Create balance during your time at home or when you are busy with a task or game. Make sure you incorporate rest breaks and recovery time. A good occupational therapist can teach you how to balance workload and capacity. See also here.

advertisements are not ours