Synonyms for crazy are: brainsick, daft, demented, disordered, distraught, dotty, insane, lunatic, mad, maniac, maniacal, mentally ill, moonstruck, off, touched, unbalanced, unsound, wrong. (Informal) bonkers, cracked, daffy, gaga, loony. (Slang) bananas, batty, buggy, cuckoo, fruity, loco, nuts, nutty, screwy, wacky. What can you do when thing get crazy? Here are a handful of tips.

1. First, own it. We all experience crazy at some time. It isn’t great (to use my sister’s words), but it happens. Try to dissect it, analyze it, do all of the left-brain activities to make logical choices about the crazy situation. Yes, try it. And then don’t beat yourself up when the logical and rational doesn’t work. The crazy is not rational. The crazy is not logical. That’s why it’s called crazy.

2. Next, have patience. Have patience with yourself and those around you. These things are hard to believe, even harder to process, and figuring out how to feel about them sucks, too. Give yourself and others some time. Is immediate action needed? Often knee-jerk reactions aren’t necessary and only add fuel to crazy’s fire. Give yourself and others involved permission to Pause and Bless this mess if you can.

3. Then, take care of yourself. Crazy can draw you in and it tries to use up all of your energy. And it can…quickly. Resist the urge to dive into the deep end to take it on. As I mentioned, crazy is not an engineering problem to be solved. It’s a lot more complicated and has no single answer. Save some energy for yourself.

4. Also, ask for help. Crazy is worse when you’re alone. Who can you share this with that can help you feel strong in moments you want to crumble? Who will be there during the times you need to let your guard down? Find that person or thing or spirit or source of energy that will sustain and support you as you travel through crazy.

5. Finally, let it go. Do all you can to choose the right path and make the right decisions and do the right things. Get advice from others. Do all you know how. Sometimes that’s not enough to calm the crazy. So when you’ve tried all you know how to do and it isn’t working, it might be best to let it go. Don’t give up. That’s different. That’s losing hope. You can still care and you can also know that the crazy is out of your control.

Crazy. It’s no fun. But don’t go through crazy alone. Rely on what or whom sustains you. They want to show up when you need them. So ask.