Many folks participating in psychotherapy are struggling with injustices currently happening in our world. From across the oceans to within our own neighborhoods, people are rightfully scared and angry, whether from directly experiencing injustice or witnessing it. It is very difficult for people to know “what to do” right now. However, here are a few principles that I, a therapist, have recently been discussing with my therapy clients as ways to remain grounded, connected, active, and even sometimes hopeful in these current times. I hope these can be useful for whoever is needing support right now.
Regulating Your Nervous System and Soma
I came across a beautiful guide on Instagram by two politicized somatic practitioners, Raina LaGrand (@roottorisesomatics) and Anna Lemler (@unfurlandrewild), discussing nervous system regulation and somatic grounding. While their guide directly addresses folks participating in political organizing, their strategies are applicable to anyone feeling mentally and physically impacted by current events.
Within this guide, they acknowledge the trauma of not just experiencing, but also being exposed to or witnessing violence. Common responses to being exposed to violence include feeling helpless or hopeless, dissociating or feeling numb, cynicism, guilt, anger, and avoidance. Nevertheless, Raina and Anna also emphasize the importance of strategies that regulate our nervous systems and somatic (i.e. bodily) responses in order to preserve our wellness. This reflects the psychotherapeutic theory that our mental and emotional wellness is directly connected to our physical wellness and vice versa. Strategies include physical and mental preservation and care toward our basic needs: exercise, nutrition, sleep, and medicine (pharmaceutical or herbal). They also recommend more specific physical exercises such as:
- “The Butterfly Hug”
- Pat or rub down your arms and legs
- Sway your body side to side or in circles, standing or seated
- Lie on the ground and feel the earth holding you
As a therapy participant, you can also discuss and explore body-based grounding and regulation strategies that feel safe and helpful for you with your therapist.
Get and Stay Educated
As a therapist guided by radical feminist theory, I strongly believe in a principle championed by feminist author and educator, bell hooks: Education is a practice of freedom. I strongly recommend (particularly if you benefit from privilege and have not been directly impacted by current events) becoming and staying educated on what is truthfully and factually happening regarding current events in our world. Furthermore, I strongly recommend becoming and staying educated on what is happening and directly impacting people within your communities and neighborhoods. The more we understand the factual history and systemic mechanisms behind current events, the better we can respond and take action in ways that are informed and meaningful. Women and Children First and Haymarket Books are two bookstores and local businesses right here in Chicago that I highly recommend supporting and patronizing. Your therapist might have some great recommendations and ideas for education, too!
Connect with Your Communities
There is so much power and healing in community. Some may argue that being in community with others is essential to true healing and wellness. A principle I often hear, specifically in abolitionist and mutual aid organizing and literature is, “We take care of each other – We’re all we’ve got.” This principle reflects the idea that there is real power, thus change, in communities coming together and providing tangible support and care to and with each other. Furthermore, this principle centers the power of human connection and creating strong, supportive interpersonal communities rather than solely relying on larger political systems and figures to “save us.”
I would encourage you to reflect on how you are in community with others who care for you and how you may strengthen your connection to these communities during tumultuous times. This may look like:
- Connecting with beloved friends and family (both chosen and/or biological) who respect your identities and emotional responses to current events
- Connecting with your neighbors and tuning into your neighbors’/neighborhood’s need for support
- Connecting with organizations, collectives, or groups in your communities that align with your values and/or politics
Through these connections, you may receive validation and emotional attunement to your thoughts and feelings on current events as well as opportunities to engage in emotionally healing activities. Engagement in any activity that feels healing to you (laughter, dancing, creating art, sharing meals, emotional processing and talking, participating in activism or resistance efforts) can greatly reduce emotional and physical distress.
For more information and education on the power of community care and connection, authors such as Dean Spade and Mariame Kaba are great resources.
Take Action
I often ground myself in a quote by Mariame Kaba, an abolitionist author and activist, when I feel hopeless about what is happening around me: “Let this radicalize you rather than lead you to despair.” Her words call us to transform our hopelessness and apathy into action and resistance. There are SO many ways to contribute to resistance efforts against oppressive forces. Take the time to reflect and explore which methods of action are in alignment with your values and politics as well as within your physical and mental capacity limits. Additionally, take time to reflect on what your privileges allow as well as your gifts and talents. Some ideas for taking action may include:
- Physically attending protests, demonstrations, lectures, or organizing meetings within your personal or professional communities
- Exploring opportunities for mutual aid and community care (ex: participating in meal drives, transportation efforts, resource sharing)
- Donating money to mutual aid organizations that are assisting impacted communities OR giving money directly to people who need assistance
- Contributing your professional/trade talents or abilities to projects or movements that benefit impacted communities
While you may feel as though “nothing will change” or “nothing I do will help what’s going on”, please remember that is not true. We have more power and influence than we are led to believe. Social and political movements have endured and succeeded because people contribute to their success in many different ways.
Furthermore, while it is essential that we take time to rest, hold space for ourselves, and regulate our nervous systems, we must not let this turn into an “excuse” for not taking action. I send this reminder particularly to those who hold racial and economic privilege. Rest, regulation, and joy are radical acts of resistance against oppression; however, we must remember that these actions are more for people who consistently experience oppression rather than those who hold privilege. We cannot “co-opt” or mistake rest for inaction.
Real Feelings, Real Action
The fear, rage, hopelessness, and despair you are experiencing in these current times are real and valid. However, you can act and you can resist. We will persevere. Therapy is not apolitical; you are always allowed to express your thoughts and feelings about current events with your therapist as well as explore strategies for action with your therapist. If you are not in therapy, consider reaching out to us to learn more about how it can help you. I am sending love and strength to whoever is reading this article and reflecting on how they can cope and act in our world today.
Sources
Raina LaGrand and Anna Lemler. “Somatic (Body-Based) Support Guide”. Retrieved from Instagram: @unfurlandrewild and @mixedracebelonging. Posted on April 30, 2024.
Hayes, K. and Kaba, M. (2023). Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care. Haymarket Books.
hooks, b. (1994). Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. New York, NY: Routledge.
“Psychosomatic Disorder.” 2024. Cleveland Clinic. Retrieved on January 8th, 2026 from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21521-psychosomatic-disorder
“Soma: Definition and Meaning”. 2026. Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved on
January 8th, 2026 from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/soma
