For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a lot of money problems and put a significant strain on many families and businesses. Suffice to say, our global economy has been hit hard by this pandemic and we can all feel the impact of it. Due to this circumstance, we indeed confront various challenges, especially financial problems and difficulties.

Nevertheless, it’s important for all of us to stay calm and remember that it is not our fault. After all, everyone is facing the same crisis and we are not alone, even though life’s challenges may vary for every person.

We need to keep in mind that the current turmoil is only temporary and the world will heal and turn to normal again at some point—sooner or later. Meanwhile, we just need to have the patience and learn to cope with stress as this crisis does give impact on our wellbeing and mental health.

Hence, here are a few things we can do to feel more in control and help us find our footing.

1. Learn to embrace acceptance

Actually, it is completely normal and all right to feel fearful, miserable, and any other negative emotions. Sadly, some may experience losing their family members or friends and even jobs, while the worst case, there were people who died by suicide because of extreme depression due to COVID-19.

If only we can see this virus, no? This global pandemic is upsetting and startling everyone as it affects our entire life. We have to accept and adapt to the new norms. By learning to accept the new norms of our daily life, we will take steps toward making our life becomes a lot better.

In other words, although we don’t have any power over the economy or coronavirus, we can still manage our reactions to it. Most importantly, we need to learn to accept and acknowledge those unwanted thoughts without letting them impact us negatively.

2. Keep reviewing your financial resources

We need to constantly go through our financial resources at all times. This action will help us gain a more realistic overview of our financial situations, whether we do have enough finances, savings and manage them properly all this while.

The key is to find out what are our financial strengths and limitations. If we don’t concern about this, we will never know the factors that cause our financial challenges during the course of any conditions.

In this way, we will try to find the right solutions to ensure that our finances are financially secure for the present and future circumstances.

3. Focus on the solutions

We need to set aside time to address our financial problems and start looking for problem-solving methods. Every time we find ourselves worrying about many things, we have to focus on searching for the solutions instantly instead of lingering on the problems. For instance, if we are struggling with our financial problems such as debts, we can look for guidance from AKPK to help us manage our debts.

Other than that, we can always sign up and enroll in financial education courses that also cover numerous aspects of life such as what’s offered by uLearnMONEY. This financial education platform will definitely assist us to learn financial strategies and get connected to experienced financial advisors that offer online courses and books at affordable prices.

By doing this, we will feel at ease and calm no matter how small or big the financial problem is because we will know the next steps that we are going to take in order to solve each problem.

4. Prioritize your payments and basic needs first

We surely need to prioritize which bills and things that we are going to pay first amidst this COVID-19 outbreak. We have to take care of our basic needs first, mainly focusing more on the necessities. In this case, budgeting plays an important role here. We need to develop a budget list so that we can manage our basic expenses and monthly payments properly.

So, we shouldn’t ignore our financial difficulties but instead, we can think of ways for alternative sources of income to cover our expenses. In fact, now many banks and other financial institutions are offering assistance to those who are greatly affected by the current pandemic.

Make sure to grab this opportunity and check out the current updates on any relief programs offered from time to time, for any financial support that we may be eligible for.

5. Avoid too much exposure to COVID-19 news

Although it is good to be informed about COVID-19 matters on social media or any forms of media but hearing about the pandemic relentlessly can be disheartening. The more we discover about the death tolls and create calamitous predictions, the more worried and upset we will feel. Thus, we just need to diverge our mindset and seek to enhance our knowledge by looking to other important aspects such as financial news, healthy living, and education.

What matters most is to concern about our self-care. We should avoid having despairing thoughts which in turn can trap us in a cycle of distress.

6. Do seek emotional support

Whenever we face problems, we do struggle with our emotions. It is crucial for us to talk to someone that we can trust and discuss about our situations, especially when we don’t have any clue on how to settle our financial obstacles.

This person can be a family member or a trusted friend. They definitely can give advice, support and help us come up with a plan for what to do next. We need to talk about how we are feeling, particularly during a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Remember, it is normal to feel anxious during any tough times and hence, we shouldn’t keep those worries to ourselves. We need to talk to someone about our problems. This strategy can help us gain strength and revitalize our energy to become a reasonable and healthy person again.

7. Find ways to relax yourself

It is quite difficult to have a vacation, gathering, or social activities at this moment. But don’t worry because there are many ways that we can do to relax and diminish our wild thoughts.

We can still reach out to our families and friends by video calls, text, and phone. Besides, we are also able to do religious or spiritual activities and meditations with our roommates or family members at home, to help us strengthen our faith and spirit during these uncertain times.

The key is we need to do relevant activities that can reduce our stress such as exercising, reading or other useful hobbies, and certainly by not hurting our wallet too much. Hence, we should prefer activities that are beneficial rather than the bad and disadvantageous ones. Finding ways to relax will guide us to have a clear path and feel more in control of what is happening.

8. Help others to cope and stop the spread of COVID-19

Other than focusing on ourselves, we also need to help others cope with these new norms as well such as our family members or friends. It is truly important to stay connected so that we all may feel less isolated or lonely.

Moreover, as a citizen of any countries, we should have the responsibility to assist the nation from getting affected by COVID-19. We just need to follow the SOPs appropriately. Besides, this useful tip will protect us from falling sick, feeling depressed, and, at the same time motivate us to stop spreading the virus to other persons that we care about and of course, to people around us too.

By staying mentally, physically, and financially well, we will surely be able to get through this pandemic the best we can. Let’s stay calm, stay positive and stay strong everyone. Together we can fight the spread of COVID-19!