JAMAICA is going through tough economic times. Every day I meet people who are experiencing personal challenges. Many people are having financial problems. Students have difficulty paying school fees. Parents are struggling to maintain their families. And some people, who are ill, cannot properly take care of themselves. The elderly, too, are having difficulty coping.

Here are a few suggestions on how to cope:

1. When the going gets tough, the tough gets going. We have to play the hand that life deals us. We cannot and must not succumb. Look at your current situation and determine what you are capable of changing and focus on that. It is also important to accept the things that you cannot change. Remember tough times don’t last forever. Tough people do.

2. Seek opportunity. OPPORTUNITYISNOWHERE. If you read this, you will either see OPPORTUNITY IS NO WHERE or OPPORTUNITY IS NOW HERE. Opportunity is like that. Sometimes when we are down and out and opportunity is staring us in the face, we are unable to see it. If we keep looking for opportunity long enough we will find it.

I recently met a lady who needed extra funds to supplement her income. She had an extra room in her house which she was not using. I encouraged her to rent the room to a student. What a difference this has made to her income.

3. Watch those negative thoughts. The problem with negative thinking is that they affect how we see ourselves and certainly how we see our future. A colleague of mine has been going through some tough times. She was overwhelmed by the bills she was unable to pay, and she had started to engage in extreme and negative thinking.

She started to envisage losing her house and her car. I was able to sit with her for a few minutes and help her work out a payment plan on her house and car. The moment she started to think about things in a positive manner, she realised that she had some resources and she was able to tackle some of the financial problems she was facing.

It is amazing that the moment we start to change our pattern of thinking, how easily solutions will come to us.

4. Turn to your support system. During these times, even more than ever, we all need to turn to our support system. These may be friends, family, colleagues at work, members of our community, and members of an organisation to which you are affiliated. They can be a source of material, emotional and spiritual support.

5. Try to look at things differently. Things may be tough and rough, but try to look at them differently. If we focus only on what is wrong or missing we are going to see things through this filter. Try to see the glimmer of hope. Try to see the opportunities around. Try to see the glass as half full and not half empty.

Professor Wendel Abel is a consultant psychiatrist at the University of the West Indies. He may be contacted at drwendelabel@gmail.com or 977-1108.