How to keep calm in times of impatience and why it’s important to do so

When you are feeling impatient, it can make you feel anxious or uneasy. However, it is important to keep calm in times of impatience because it helps you stay focused on your goals and navigate the situation with your own best intentions in mind. Acting out of frustration can lead to self sabotage when you are impatient, and it can also hurt your relationships. Practicing strategies to maintain your equilibrium when you are feeling impatient can help you grow as a person and develop a stronger character, which will help you stay grounded even when dealing with things outside your control. Developing the ability to find ways to stay calm when you are feeling impatient can help you shift your body from a “flight-or-fight” hormonal state to a “rest-and-digest” hormonal state. The more you can practice making this important hormonal shift, the easier it will become over time.

Here are some tips for keeping calm when you feel impatient:

Get curious to gain awareness.

Look within and ask yourself why you are feeling impatient. There are probably reasons below the surface of the situation. Some feelings of impatience may seem situational but are actually tied to core fears of inadequacy or low self worth. Or, you might be struggling with beliefs that others are incompetent which can cause you to feel frustrated with other people’s timelines in completing agreed upon tasks. Taking time to have an inner dialogue, free of judgment, can help you gain clarity on why you are feeling impatient. This clarity alone can help you feel calmer once you gain awareness of your own responses and the reasons behind them.

Practice mindfulness.

There are many ways to practice mindfulness, which is proven to help you reduce stress and manage feelings of impulsivity and anxiety that impatience often causes. Meditation and breathing exercises are both excellent ways to develop mindfulness. Taking slow, deep breaths while you count to ten can help you create emotional space around your impatience and allow you to explore other ways to respond. Practicing yoga, tai chi, or other gentle forms of movement can also increase your ability to access mindfulness when you are feeling impatient.

Lean into acceptance.

Try to grow your ability to accept that which is beyond your control. Know that sometimes, no matter how you feel, you may have to accept things you don’t like. Self-compassion can really help you gain the ability to accept imperfection in yourself, which then allows you to more easily accept imperfection in others, too. The way that we treat ourselves is reflected in how we treat others, so the kinder you can be to yourself, the more kindness you will be able to offer to others also.

If you have tried these strategies and are still struggling with finding ways to keep calm in times of impatience, Chenal Family Therapy can help you. Call us today to learn more.