How to Survive the Uncertainty Surrounding Us
Tags: Transformation, Mindfulness, Personal Growth, Wellness, Mental Health

How to Survive the Uncertainty Surrounding Us

Photo: David Wall/Getty Images

The world is full of uncertainty right now, and many people are experiencing the ups and downs of adapting to new ways of living. I’ve had a few emotional dips recently, which took me by surprise — I’m generally an upbeat person.

But William Bridges, author of Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes, has some compelling explanations for these ebbs and flows. He explains that change is external — moving from one city to another, for example — but transition or adaptation to change is an internal, psychological process.

Bridges describes three nonlinear phases of transition: endings, neutral zone, and new beginnings. Endings occur with significant changes in relationships, employment, home life, finances, lifestyle, and inner being. The neutral zone is a place of emptiness, a kind of no-man’s-land — endings are not fully resolved, and the future is not clear. New beginnings are characterized by embracing new possibilities, acceptance, and adapting willingly.

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It’s no surprise to find ourselves in endings or the neutral zone now, considering there is no clear end in sight to the Covid-19 pandemic. If you’re in the endings phase, you might feel sad, angry, or fearful. If you are in the neutral zone, you might experience uncertainty, confusion, or disorientation,

The neutral zone is like a twilight zone — neither completely dark nor fully light. It’s gray, foggy; we can’t see clearly. Part of us is still in the ending phase, holding on to what has been familiar, suffering, and resisting. Another part has a foot in the new beginning, trying to adjust to a new world. We know that our previous reality has changed, and we can’t quite get our heads around the future because it hasn’t fully arrived yet. We sense it, but it’s just beyond our reach. So we find ourselves somewhere in the middle, feeling disoriented.

We can’t just skip the neutral zone and jump right into the new beginning. We have to wander through it, getting flashes of the past and how things used to be. Emotions and memories are stirred up. We feel unsettled and angry at the whole damn thing.

Our psyche needs time to process, to grieve, and to let go. It doesn’t happen overnight.

We’re not sure who to believe or trust. We may feel confused, not entirely on our game, but we carry on. We can’t quite put our finger on why things aren’t getting better faster. Something has happened that we didn’t initiate, and now we’re figuring out how to deal with it. We’ve not been here before, not like this. We’re flying without any radar, and we don’t feel like ourselves.

Welcome to the neutral zone.

We have to go through it to get to the other side. Our psyche needs time to process, to grieve, and to let go. It doesn’t happen overnight.