Last year, I was in a car crash. The car crash wasn’t my fault, instead, I was hit from behind after the car in front of me stopped short. The crash was sudden but I quickly moved to the side and got out of my car.
It wasn’t until after I went to school and switched around cars with my mom that I realized that something was wrong with my head. I could speak right and I was really tired. I knew I needed to go to the hospital.
They told me I had a concussion.
I never had had a concussion before but it was during those next two weeks that I realized that I didn’t feel my normal anxiety or depression that I would normally feel during those times.
I felt present. Like my mind was focusing on what was going on around me, not anything about my assignments or about my upcoming finals. It was just the sky, the trees, and the people around me.
I know that during that time, I wasn’t feeling any of my mental illnesses. I was mindful and present like most people feel. To me, what I was feeling was peaceful and I enjoyed every second of it.
It made me wonder if other people who have mental illnesses that get concussions are the same way, but that is another subject for another time.
About four years ago, I went on vacation to London. Honestly, I loved every second of it. I like to say that London tried to kill me with me being extremely close to lightning and almost getting hit by bicycles and cars. The day we landed in London, three hours to be specific, our taxi was hit by a car.
I’d like to say that it was nice, but it wasn’t. I couldn’t stop crying. Everything I felt was scared and distressed. The only thing that calmed me down was reading. I started reading from my dad’s phone and suddenly I just felt peace.
That peace felt like even though everything was stressful, I was okay, and I knew I was okay.
How Can We Have Peace in Stressful Situations?
There are a couple of ways that we can find peace. One way is through breathing. I could have freaked out during both of those situations but I stayed calm. I focused on things around me and not on what my condition was.
Try to distract yourself with something to do. While in my car crash in London, I chose to read instead of focusing on what was around me. It calmed me down to the point where I knew that I was okay. Choose a good distraction like reading, writing, or walking. Exercise can be good at keeping your mind calm.
Lastly, remind yourself that what is happening in your life will pass. You don’t always go through one thing your whole life. What you are going through will pass.
I know life can be hard. There are going to be times when you don’t feel like you can find any peace. When there is stress, pain, and sadness it can feel like nothing could fix it. Try to remember to breathe, focus on people or things around you that are positive, and distraction with positive things.
This too will pass. Life will be good again so just try giving yourself some peace within the storm.
I don’t know why I felt peace from my concussion but I do know that it was a blessing in my life because now I try to find peace wherever I go. It feels nice and makes me happy.
I promise that if you try to take some time to have peace in your life, you will be able to feel better about anything you are going through.
