6 Tips To Help You Overcome Challenges in Life

Maybe you’ve recently lost a loved one, got fired from a job or ended a relationship. Or maybe it’s another stressor altogether. But, no matter what you’re currently struggling with, you can make it through.

When the going gets tough, here are 6 tips to help you overcome challenges life brings your way.

1. Don’t live in silence.

Never keep your emotions bottled up. Talk it out. Surround yourself with those who love you and are available, and let them help you. Talking doesn’t mean the situation is going to just disappear, but it’ll help you better understand yourself and your situation. You may even talk to someone who’s gone through something similar and has the experiences and perspective you need to hear.

2. Be grateful for what you have.

Gratitude is appreciating all the good in your life rather than dwelling on the negative. Get a gratitude journal. Start by writing one thing or person a day you’re grateful for, and then in a week or a month you’ll be able to list 10 things a day you’re grateful for. Giving sincere thanks allows you to better recognize your blessings and feel God’s love for you. The tough time you’re facing will also feel less significant when you compare it to all the good in your life.

3. Focus on the positive.

No matter how many curveballs life throws your way stay positive. Recognize what you’re doing well and everything that’s going right in your life. Staying positive is only a small part of pushing through hard times, but it’s an important part.

4. Create balance in your life.

To survive difficult circumstances, you have to put you first. You have to physically and mentally take care of yourself. Do something every day that’s good for your mind, body and soul. Go for a walk. Take a yoga class. Meditate. Solve a puzzle. Make time for you, and every part of you.

5. Forgive and forget.

Whether it’s someone else’s fault for your bad situation or yourself, don’t suppress anger or resentment. Accept what’s happened and forgive. Focus your energy on moving on rather than harboring all those negative feelings.

6. Rely on faith, hope and the Lord.

Above all else, you need to live the religious principles you want to preserve. Keep to your religion, having faith and hope that all will work out. Your faith, your religion, is what helps give you strength when you experience difficult circumstances. In the 2016 BYU Campus Education Week Devotional, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland powerfully said:

“Religion is that which unites what was separated or holds together that which might be torn apart, an obvious need for us, individually and collectively, given trials and tribulations we all experience here in mortality. … I testify that true religion—the gospel of Jesus Christ—gives us…‘peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come,’ as the scripture phrases it. True religion brings understanding of and loyalty to our Father in Heaven and His uncompromised love for every one of His spirit children past, present, and future. True religion engenders in us faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and hope in His Resurrection. It encourages love, forbearance, and forgiveness in our interactions with one another as He so magnanimously demonstrated them in His.”

Use these antidotes to hold together through the tough time you’re facing, and the tough times you’ll face in the future. It may seem hard and overwhelming now, but remember that all tough times come to an end, and have faith and hope through these words of Gary E. Stevenson, “You have the Savior of the world on your side. If you seek His help and follow His directions, how can you fail?”