Coping:

Coping skills help you tolerate, reduce, and deal with stressful situations in life. Managing your stress in a good way can help you feel better physically and psychologically and it can affect your ability to perform your best.

There are different types of coping and not all coping skills are created equal. Sometimes, it’s tempting to engage in strategies that give quick support but might create bigger problems for you later. It is important to establish healthy and balanced coping skills that will help you reduce your stress. As with all elements there are two sides of the coin

There are two main types of coping skills: problem-based coping and emotion-based coping.

Problem-based coping is helpful when you need to change your situation in the long run, you can do this by removing the stressful element. For example, if you are in fear for an exam or important meeting; you can plan and discuss the steps to take with others to relieve the pressure and feel prepared. This will make you more capable of dealing with the stressor.

Emotion-based coping is helpful when you need to take care of your stress directly. For example you can exercise by going for a run or to the gym; Afterwards you will feel better but the cause of the stress (stressor) still remains. You need to deal with that in a more constructive way such as problem based coping. We advise to use emotion-based coping when direct relief of pressure is needed, but after that problem-based coping is advised.

There is no best way to proceed. It is up to you to decide which type of coping skill is likely to work best for you in your particular situation. We advise to balance the various styles as you see fit.