If you read my Monday morning email last week, you know that this site was hacked, and I almost lost the whole thing – several years of articles and blog posts and all the related information that promotes my practice.

Obviously, I didn’t lose it, it’s still here.  But there were several moments throughout the week that I faced the possibility that it would all be gone.  Thinking about starting over was enough to make my stomach turn.  The time and money to rewrite and re-develop the site was not something I was prepared for.  I kept thinking of the “what it’s” and “why didn’t I” scenarios related to backing up, saving, and protecting my data.  There were a few heart-racing, blood pressure elevating, near panic-attack moments.

Losing a website – especially one as simple as this – is NOTHING compared to the loss many of us are facing now, or might be facing over the next few weeks.

Loss of normalcy.  Loss of productivity.  Loss of job.  Loss of stability.  Loss of health.  Loss of connection.  Loss of loved ones.  Loss of life.  Loss of relationships.

We may have to face starting over in some ways.  We are already looking at a “new normal” for the time being, and for the indefinite future.  We may be questioning the “what if’s” and “why didn’t I”.  We may not have a back-up plan.

Even in the face of unavoidable suffering, we have the ability to choose our attitude towards it.  We may not be able to change what is happening in the world, but we can adapt the way we handle it.

We can choose humor in the face of difficulty.   “It is well known that humor, more than anything else in the human make-up, can afford an aloofness and an ability to rise above any situation, even if only for a few seconds.” – Viktor Frankl

We can choose the “defiant power of the human spirit” when struggling with adversity.

We can choose an attitude of growth and evolution in the face of uncertainty, rather than falling into self-pity and fear.

We can choose to connect with those around us, when cut off from our normal social circle – or we can choose to use the technology we have to connect in new ways.

We can choose to discover new meaning in life, and to truly live the idea that “life has meaning under all circumstance, even the most miserable.”

And if you feel you can’t make that choice, I am here to help – we can chat through the technology of virtual sessions and telehealth, or feel free to take a look at the courses on Logotherapy & Meaning I designed over at www.DrDan.Teachable.com

Take care, stay healthy, find the opportunities in this crisis to discover meaning.  – Dan