Fear is a funny thing. It is easy to be afraid, and to me that is why it feels so powerful. Often we feel we require fear to be brave, or its absence to feel confident. Even the antonyms imply a relationship of necessity.  If you have no fear and take action, is it not just an action? But if you have fear and act despite your fear then you "become" brave. The current climate inspires a type of fear that is societal. Our Darwinian response is left wanting. We can't take flight in the traditional sense, so we must fight, but our armor is limited. Our best precautions are not guaranteed.  This constant stress, though we might drink it away, or ignore it by binge watching "Tiger King" settles in our bodies. It isn't unlike the virus. As luck would have it, our resources to combat stress are vast. We hear about staying hydrated, proper nutrition, expending physical energy, keeping our bodies and minds active. Yes to every one, but what if we still feel... sad, scared, angry, tired? One of the hardest things for me has been sitting with a feeling. "Holding space" as we say in the yoga community, but holding it for others has always come more naturally for me. Holding it for myself has been infinitely harder. So when it becomes too much, that is precisely when we have to just be with it. Turn off the tv, put down your phone, tell your family you need a moment and find somewhere to simply be. Be alone, be sad, be scared, be angry, cry, scream, throw something (preferably soft!) and then just breathe.  It. Is. So. Hard. Just know that any release you create from whatever emotion demands your attention,  spares your body from a stored trauma. Read that last line again, and remember that everything is not terrible.