Anchoring Ourselves When the World Feels Out of Control

2/25/2026

Sara Powers

MSW, LSW

Lately, it can feel like everywhere you turn—on the news, social media, or even casual conversations—you’re being reminded that the world is uncertain and overwhelming. When things in your world feel out of control, you begin to feel out of control. While you cannot control what is happening in the world, you can control how you respond to it. Finding and practicing techniques that calm your mind as well as your body, you can take back the reins of control and make choices that are in alignment with your values.

Why Anxiety Spikes When Life Feels Unpredictable

The human brain likes predictability. When the future feels uncertain, your nervous system often shifts into “fight, flight, or freeze”. When this happens, you lose some access to the higher order thinking part of your brain. Instead, it focuses on keeping you safe. In order to regain control over your brain, you have to regulate your body. Feeling out of control often shows up differently for everyone. For teens, this can look like worry, irritability, shutting down, or restlessness. For parents, it may show up as overthinking, sleepless nights, or trying to solve everything at once.

When your brain is stuck on high alert, it creates exhaustion and overwhelm that can take up all the space in your mind. That’s where grounding and self-regulation strategies can help. When your body gets the message (you’re safe and okay!), it’ll relay that information to your brain. You will begin to feel calmer, more grounded, and less overwhelmed. These evidence-based tools help calm your mind, steady your body, and remind you of your own resilience.

1. Ground Yourself in the Present

When your thoughts spiral, bring yourself back to now. Entering into the cycle of “what next?” can cause your body to descend into panic mode. Your heart rate increases, you start sweating, your mind is racing.

Grounding techniques and exercises help to remind your body that you’re safe and allows your mind to take back some of the control. When this happens, your focus and mood improve.

• Try the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding method: name 5 things you see, 4 you can touch, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste.
• Practice square breathing: inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4.
• Set a 20-minute timer to do one small task, then reward yourself with a break.

These small steps remind your brain: I’m safe right now.

2. Create Small Anchors of Routine

Routine provides a safety net against the unpredictability of the world. Even when the environment around you is rocky, small routines can help to calm the storm in your mind. The routines do not need to be elaborate, small things like a night time routine or a weekly catch up with friends do the trick!

• Keep a consistent sleep schedule and daily rhythm.
• Set up a “calm corner”: can include things like music, a cozy blanket, soft lights, things that soothe you.
• Make a short “things I can control” list to glance at when worry grows.
• Engage in self-care, like journaling, practicing your hobbies, spending time with loved ones– anything that fills your cup.

Predictability tells your body: Not everything is chaos.

3. Move, Act, and Focus on What You Can Do

Action restores agency. Sometimes, there isn’t anything to be done about the situation. That doesn’t mean you have to be idle. Small changes, small actions, small choices can make a big difference in your mood. These small actions can be used in a pinch to break you out of a thought-spiral, as well as be the first step in a bigger plan to make a change.

• Move your body: walk, stretch, dance, or do a workout class to release anxious energy.
• Organize one small space: your desk, your backpack, your room.
• Limit media time: set up a designated time to read or watch the news or scroll on social media.
• Learn something new or help someone else: small acts of growth or kindness remind you that you can make a difference.

Growth and change take place over the course of hundreds of small, intentional steps.

4. Practice Gratitude and Self-Compassion

When anxiety narrows your focus to what’s wrong, gratitude helps widen it again. Practicing gratitude does not equal ignoring reality, downplaying unfortunate events, or even looking for that “silver lining”. It’s about recognizing that, while things out of your control can and do occur, there is beauty and goodness around you as well!

No one is perfect and no one can be on their a-game 100% of the time. It’s normal and natural to experience difficulty in managing stress. Practicing self-compassion is a useful tool to utilize when worries, fears, and doubts come calling. Take a few minutes to remind yourself of your strengths! Practice self-compassion by giving yourself the grace you would extend to a loved one.

• Before bed, name three good things (no matter how small).
• Try self-kindness statements:
  • “I’m doing the best I can.”
  • “I can handle hard things, even when I don’t feel like it.”
• Keep a gratitude journal or list.

Gratitude doesn’t erase stress, but it balances it with perspective.

5. Reach Out and Remember You’re Not Alone

Talk to someone you trust—a parent, friend, or therapist. Sharing the parts that feel out of control can help to lighten the load. Something as quick as a 10-minute phone call to your best friend can relieve stress and free up space in your mind.

Connection itself is a form of safety. When thoughts and feelings run wild, they tend to seem bigger and scarier than they really are. Spending a few minutes chatting with someone about these thoughts and feelings can help to put them back into perspective.

• Call a friend on the phone – even if just for 5 minutes.
• Write a letter to a loved one.
• Confide in a parent.

Connection reminds us that life is sweeter when it’s shared.

In a world where unpredictability is the only thing that feels predictable, it’s easy to feel lost and overwhelmed. Staying aware and informed about current events is important, and so is feeling safe and regulated. Anxiety can drain your capacity to be present, engaged, and attentive. When you find ways to fill your cup back up, you take back control.