What is coping and how is it carried out?

Facingdifficult situations tests our ability to solve them. Many times, without prior knowledge, we have succeeded in the solution and in others we have not.

That ability that allows us to face and address stressful and unpleasant situations is part of apsychological strategy called coping.

In this sense, coping is one of the many mechanisms used tomanage stress or stressful situations.

In the following article, we offer you valuable information about this strategy and how you can use it.

What is coping?

According toLazarus(1) andFolkma n(2), copingis defined as a set ofcognitive and behavioral strategies, which the individual uses to manage internal or external demands that are perceived as excessive for the individual’s resources, in order toface a certain situation tosolve it.

Important: Inthe psychoanalytic model of psychologyit is defined “as the set of realistic and flexible thoughts and acts that solve problems and, therefore, reduce stress”. (3)

Coping objectives

Theobjectives of coping are based on the solution of situations that cause stress in the individual. Here are three of them:

Modify situations

One of the purposes of this strategy isto turn a stressful situation into a manageable situationfor people.

This seeksto eliminate the tension created in the individual, when they see themselves for moments, without the ability to resolve any situation. This also facilitates the achievement of the proposed goals and objectives.

Inclusively, it is also an opportunity for the individual to transform and change, in their way of thinking, perceiving, and expressing emotions.

Note: Turning the stressful situation into a challenge can contribute to our personal development and improve our lifestyle.

Manage emotions properly

The coping strategy helps people to consciously know how to channel emotions to maintain balance and harmony.

With emotions in a state of balance, the individual is able to set goals and achieve them. as well as having healthy relationships with others and being able to give the best of ourselves.

Solve and overcome difficulties

This strategy is designed so that people generate, based on options and alternatives, solutions to situations and overcome difficulties. It isgiving value to what generates satisfactionto your emotional demands. In this situation, individuals becomeResilient People .

When people are enrolled in a Perfectionist Personality and fail to achieve the objectives described above, it can give rise to dysfunctional thoughts and with it atelophobia .

Important: It is vital to have confidence in our abilities to face stressful situations from different perspectives.

Types of Coping

The Types of Copingare diverse, and are designed according to the perspective of the proponent. We give you the most common ones below:

directed at the problem

At this point it is vital to search for information related to the problemtag. Thanks to computing resources, we can find a lot of information in a relatively short time, allowing usto make quick decisions .

But you must be careful about the quality and quantity of information you access, this to avoid anxiety and stress, which are disorders that would aggravate the problem.

Note: On the web, first-hand information is very varied to deal with the same problem, so it is not recommended to face the problem from this perspective.

directed at emotion

To overcome problems, the important thing is not to focus only on emotions. In this sense, one of the ways you can resort to when a stressful situation exceeds your capacities isto focus on managing your emotions .

On this path, people try to manage the emotions that the problem generates, but they must connect them with consciousness, that is, Be objectively introspective .

This path is very delicate, and specialists do not recommend focusing your energies to resolve situations,managing your emotions, because if you do not succeed, they can become obstacles. Excuses can be created and validated for not moving towards solving the unhealthy situation.

Important: In a study entitled “Explanatory styles and coping strategies” , it explains the incidence of coping types on the depressive states of the individual. (4)tag. Another article explains the coping strategies most used in people with anxiety states.(5)

Avoidance

At this stage, people decide to Postpone coping with the problematic situation , in order to rearrange their resources, and to be able to address different stressful situations from a different perspective.

In this situation, the individual makes the decision to separate from the situation that has caused the stress, to calm down, meditate or divert their attention to other activities.

Important: This type of coping can be effective , if the postponement time is not very long, since the stressful situation will always be present.

Strategies to carry out coping

According to the literature, there are various ways or strategies to carry out coping, and their use will depend on the weaknesses and strengths of the individual . Here are the main strategies:

Face and acknowledge the situation

For this strategy, it is important to recognize that we have a problem or a stressful situation, which deserves our full attention and concentration.

Note: Expressions such as “this problem is not my concern” or “I have no head for that” are common expressions of people with little will to face difficult situations.

Actively control the problem

Maintaining constant supervision and control over the stressful situation gives us the feeling that we have a problem that we have not yet solved, but that we do not intend to abandon it and we are also convinced that we can find a quick solution.

This keeps us in constant activity and with positive thoughts, essential for our self-esteem.

Analyze the situation carefully

The functions of perception, memory, thinking, among others, must consciously focus on the analysis of the present situation .

recognize the limits

It is important to know about ourselvestag. Recognizing ourabilities and skills helps us to know if we have enough tools to resolve the stressful situation.

Note: Recognizing our limits is knowing when we need help.

Trust in abilities

By recognizing our skills and abilities , we must also trust that they can provide us with the necessary tools to face different stressful situations.

Tip: “Trust yourself, and you will know how to live.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Ask for help if necessary

We all need helpat some point. Knowing to what extent we are competent in stressful situations, we must immediately recognize that weneed help , but we must be careful since the help we request must come from people who can really solve our problems.

Faced with this, it allows us to Learn New Things , to have different experiences and perspectives, and to increase our abilities and skills.

Key Findings

• Coping is a strategy aimed at coping with stressful situations and reducing the negative impact of stressful events.
• The coping strategy is dynamic because it responds to a stimulus.
• It is used to regulate the emotions of the individual in a positive way.
• Allows continuous learning.
• Raise our self-esteem.