Life can be filled with many difficult moments. Whether you’ve struggled through years of abuse or have struggled with a difficult upbringing, repeated exposure to stressful events may lead you to self-sabotage. This is because many people may feel like they are unable to change their circumstances, a feeling known as learned helplessness. In this article, you’ll learn more about how to deal with learned helplessness so you can find hope in improving your life for the better.
At The Bridge to Recovery, we are a leading mental health workshop that provides a safe space for you to heal from family-of-origin trauma and work toward improved mental health. We offer a unique mental health program to heal your mind, body, and spirit through our innovative workshop method. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you lead a healthier, happier life.
What is Learned Helplessness?
Before diving into how to deal with learned helplessness, it’s important to understand what learned helplessness is. Life is filled with many ups and downs. From the loss of a loved one or home, to financial difficulties, abuse, or constant stress for the future, we all experience stress and negative circumstances in our lives. However, some individuals who experience repeated stressful or negative events may learn to expect these negative circumstances in their lives. This is known as learned helplessness.
Learned helplessness is feeling like you lack control or the ability to change the negative circumstances in your life, even when you are given opportunities to improve your life for the better. Inevitably, learned helplessness can keep you stuck in a cycle of negative situations rather than pursuing change and opportunities that can break the cycle.
4 Ways to Deal with Learned Helplessness
Now that you know more about learned helplessness, below are several steps you can take on how to deal with this feeling.
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Recognize Your Struggle with Learned Helplessness
First, it’s important to recognize and acknowledge your struggle with learned helplessness. It can be easy to get so wrapped up in the negativity in your life that you miss out on opportunities for change to improve your life. Therefore, if you feel that you constantly lack control over your life, you may be struggling with learned helplessness.
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Seek Support to Change Unhealthy Thinking
Next, it’s important to understand that you can get out of the cycle of learned helplessness. Whether you are struggling with unresolved trauma or depression, it’s important to consider seeking professional support to help you break free from your unhealthy thought patterns.
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Understand What You Can and Cannot Control
Learned helplessness relies on the individual thinking that they do not have control over their life and thus are stuck in a cycle of negative circumstances. While you are not in control of everything in your life, you do have some control over your life. Understanding that change is possible can help you look for opportunities to improve your quality of life.
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Prioritize Healthy Coping Strategies
Next, it’s important to prioritize healthy coping strategies in your life. Once you’ve acknowledged your struggle with learned helplessness, it’s important to prioritize healthy coping strategies like journaling or breathing exercises to help you live a happier, healthier life.
Help Is Available
Now you know more about how to deal with learned helplessness. While you cannot change the past, you can change your future through opportunities to make your life better in the present moment. Whether you are struggling with unresolved trauma, depression, or another mental illness, we are here to help!
At The Bridge to Recovery, we are here to help you find healing from family-of-origin trauma and its effects on your well-being. Our mental health workshop can help you learn to recognize patterns of learned helplessness in your life and can help you break free of these thoughts. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your recovery.