With Olympia LePoint’s TED talk, “Reprogramming Your Brain to Overcome Fear” as the foundation, rocket scientist and author Olympia LePoint identifies how to use science and faith to thrive past your COVID-19 pandemic fears.
“The world is at a critical infection point where its creative, scientific innovations will ultimately save humanity.”
– Olympia LePoint, Rocket Scientist & Author
Who do you choose to become in the middle of a pandemic? You have a choice. You have a decision in front of you. No one knows the future 100%. But you have a contract with yourself about your future. The question is clear. Will you choose to miraculously thrive through life’s pandemics? Or will you allow fear to breakdown your mental strength?
Everyone across the world is experiencing trauma collectively. According to the TIME magazine article “The Coronavirus Pandemic May Be Causing an Anxiety Pandemic” by Jeffrey Kluger on March 26, 2020, many Americans are being affected by fear. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, just over 19% of all American adults will experience at least one anxiety disorder over any 12-month period. Anxiety disorders are likely to increase because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, agoraphobia, acute stress disorder and separation anxiety disorders most likely will be more pronounced during the pandemic crisis.
If you think that you are the only person worrying about your income and potential health, you are not alone. We together are in a painful survival mode. Every nation is affected in this pandemic. Millions of people across the globe are asking the same questions. Will when there be enough COVID-19 tests to isolate the virus? Will there be a coronavirus immunization? Will there be doctors to help? How will food be supplied? What will happen to my companies, my job and the economy? How will low-income children and seniors eat? Will the schools and events ever be safe to reopen?
Do you know that your constant questioning is most-likely shutting off your brain’s problem-solving abilities? Per science, all of your questions are triggering your brain’s reptilian area to loop in fear. The more you think about these questions, your brain literally separates itself temporarily. According to the International OCD Foundation, research suggests that OCD involves problems in communication between the brain’s frontal lobes and its deeper structures. My dear friend, neuroscience author Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz explains in his “Neuroscience of Habit” lecture that painful thoughts disconnect your brain. Your frontal brain lobes are responsible for your executive decision-making. Your brain’s corpus striatum places you into action. These parts are supposed to communicate with one another. But in fear, your corpus striatum spins in chaos and detaches from your executive mind. As a result, your mind goes on “auto-pilot,” and you become unaware. You cannot find the answers in front of you. When you take steps to transform your fears and communicate with yourself, you will activate your own prescription for mental success.
Become Aware = Your Pandemic Protection
“ You must be in a state where you are aware. Otherwise, you will allow the situation to take you out.” – My Mother, March 2020
After I returned from a traumatic grocery store trip where most food was sold out, my mother sat me down. She stopped my frantic movements. She looked at me in my eyes. She reminded me that my mind is stronger than any life circumstance that I am experiencing. I woke up! I had to get myself out of “victim mode” and into “thriving mode.” Her reminder was a wake up call. And it was time for me to take my own professional guidance. In my two books, I write about removing fears from your brain. I explain that we each have different dysfunctional ways that we handle fear. In my first book Mathaphobia, I explain that we can become “Quincy the Quitter,” “Donna the Over Doer,” “Samuel the Struggler,” and “Crystal the Criticizer.” By reprogramming ourselves to become aware, we can become “David the Determined,” “Sarah the Strategist,” “Ivan the Innovator” and “Ellen the Explorer,” respectively. In my second book Answers Unleashed, I share that traumatic situations present chaotic energy to be used for your success. This chaotic energy is the secret “tragedy-turned-gift” that you are given to rewire your brain for innovative answers.
When you become aware, you will notice the actions that keep you safe. You will recognize when you can avoid doors that have not been cleaned. You will notice a person who may be contagious, and you will step away. You may receive intuition to go in a new direction that will ultimately keep you protected. The only way to activate your protection is to admit your fears. Decide to let the fears go, and commit to yourself that you will become aware. In being aware, you give yourself permission to choose the future that you want for yourself. Your awareness is the reason why you are alive.
Dump Out Your Toxic Thinking and Replace It with Your Purpose
Ask yourself: What successful place do I see myself after this pandemic ends?
When you learn to reprogram your thinking, you give yourself permission to succeed. When you learn that you have choices in picking your future, you are empowered to create the future that you want. When you apply the truth about your future, you become resilient. Here is the process to dump out toxic thinking.
You cannot control a virus, but you can control what you choose to focus upon. You can become aware of your hidden thoughts that are racing through your mind. Most likely, your current pandemic fears are stemming from a much deeper fear within you that was first introduced in your childhood. If you can go back to a time from 1 – 18 years old, you most likely experienced something traumatic. What fears do you remember the most? The answer to that question is most likely the fear that is triggering your current state of COVID-19 panic.
For me, I grew up in severe poverty. At times, we had no food to eat and no toilet paper to use. So the COVID-19 pandemic triggers feelings of severe lack and social neglect in certain moments. But I remember that poverty is the past. I am in 2020. This is a new year with its own challenges. This time, I am an educated adult who finds the resources for myself and my family. If you are reading this article, the same fact is true for you. Hold on to the truth. The truth helps you renew your mind.
Here is an exercise to help you reprogram your thinking for your purpose.
- Find 2 blank sheets of paper.
- On the 1st sheet, write down the fears that you are currently experiencing.
- Explain how you currently feel in the middle of the pandemic situations (let it all out!)
- Next, identify the age in your past when you felt the exact same frustration or fear. Describe what bothered you the most during that time.
- Now, go back in time and tell your younger-self the truth of that moment. Tell your younger-self the knowledge that you know today. Tell yourself what you learned after that challenging experience passed.
- Now imagine yourself in the future. Ask your future-self, what you can do now to keep yourself focused, safe and protected today.
- On your 2nd sheet of paper, write down the answers that you gained from communicating with your past and future self.
- Post the paper to your bathroom mirror, or a place that you view daily. Every time you see the paper, you reprogram your mind to see the truth.
Learn the Science Facts & Create Your Own Innovation
“It is our job to accept change and learn new things for our lives to continue. During this global change, allow your innovative creativity to spread faster than any crisis.” – Olympia LePoint
This pandemic is giving the world the energy that it needs to create life-changing innovation. As a scientist, I study how other scientists create innovation. Within the last 7 days, billionaires Elon Musk, Richard Branson and Sir James Dyson designed and manufactured new hospital respirators for the COVID-19 Pandemic patients. These are portable respirators that require no electricity. Thousands are being created. This innovation is unlike any event the world has seen in the past.
Education has also transformed. Schools across the United States ended in-person lectures, and millions of students turned to online classes. This phenomenon just revolutionized the education system across the world. Since doctor’s offices are now being affected by pandemic viruses, online doctors are now available to help people across the world via the internet. This online medical surge is unprecedented. Though the economic and social shutdowns due to COVID-19 in countries across the globe, there are major shifts that help reduce Climate Change. When you learn the facts of a situation, you are given the opportunity to build your own creative solution.
Let’s consider your possible situation. If you have no income to buy food during this time, check out the donation centers around town. Or go on facebook and find groups where people are willing to deliver goods to people. If you have no income to pay rent, check out your state laws and see if your leadership has postponed rent or mortgage payments for 90 days. Talk to your landlord. Talk to your lenders. Other people are also affected. Most state governments are doing everything for people to stay in their homes.
So, if there is no cleaning products in the store, it is time to learn some science. Johns Hopkins University offers free online courses about COVID-19 and epidemiology. You can learn the science facts and follow World Health Organization guidelines. And these facts can lead to innovative solutions. If you cannot find any cleaning supplies in the store, place your thinking cap on. You can find hydrogen peroxide and mix it with water to create your own disinfecting solution. Or, you can steam clean items and burn through the fat-outer-coating of the invisible COVID-19 viruses. When you think with innovation like the scientists mentioned above, God and Mother Nature offers you endless opportunities to thrive in a crisis.
Until next time, I pray that everyone readying this article is protected, healthy and safe. And may you live a healthy life here on Earth for decades to come. Find me on:
Sincerely,
Olympia LePoint