This past week I have had several conversations with deeply intelligent, kind and spiritual friends who have decided to tune out what’s going on in Iran. I believe this is coming from a place of not knowing what to do, so I’m here to help.

Here are 3 things you can do to tune in to your own humanity and the humanity of others in the face of bad news and global events:

1. Reach out to a friend who is impacted by the situation and ask how they are doing and if they need any support. Don’t be pushy; they might not be ready to talk about it. But knowing that you care might have a positive impact on their lives.

2. Consciously make a boundary around the content you will consume on the topic. If your boundary is 0% tolerance (as in, “I want nothing to do with this topic”) then consciously state that. Maybe your boundary is “I am willing to have 1 conversation on this topic a week” or “I will read and share 1 post a week”. There is no right way of doing this. Each person is different. But I do believe there is power in intentionally deciding your own boundaries. PS: You are allowed to move your boundary at any time.

3. Journal about the topic. Here’s a question to explore in your journalling practice this week. What has your grief or sadness about the situation taught you about life? These emotions can be very intense, but they are also full of gifts. What could happen to your life if you were able to change your relationship to these so-called darker emotions?

Life can be intense. We all need to step back and tune out the noise at times. I get it—I do it too.

But stepping back is only one tool available to us—it shouldn’t be the end destination. It should be a resting point, to help us build capacity so that we can step forward and reconnect with our fellow humans.

Big love,

D