How to Stay Calm in Chaos: Become an Island of Peace When Life Feels Out of Control
There are moments in life when chaos doesn’t knock.
It charges straight at you.
That’s exactly what happened earlier this week when MaryBeth and I took our horses, Ollie and Norby, out for a walk in the Arizona desert.
It had been a little while since we’d been able to take them out, so it felt really good to finally get them moving. It was a beautiful day. Everyone felt calm. Everyone felt soft. Everything was going great.
Especially Ollie.
And if you know Ollie, that says a lot.
Ollie is our big Norwegian Fjord. He’s incredibly strong and designed to pull things, so when he gets excited, especially around food, he can get pushy. He requires a certain level of presence and steadiness to stay connected. On this walk, he was doing amazing. Gentle. Grounded. Easy.
MaryBeth said multiple times, “this is the best he’s ever done on a walk before!”
Until he wasn’t.
Right as we were about to turn around, the wind picked up.
Where we are in Arizona, it’s windy season. It had been windy earlier in the day, but when we left for the walk, it was calm. Then out of nowhere, this huge gust came through. MaryBeth said, “I think we should head back.”
So we turned around.
I was walking in front with Norby when I heard MaryBeth yell.
I turned around, and all I saw was Ollie rearing up on his hind legs, terrified, about to charge right at us.
Thankfully, (to keep herself safe and not be dragged), MaryBeth let go of the lead rope.
Ollie instantly took off into the middle of the hundreds-of-years-old established desert.
Just like that.
And in that moment, I had a choice.
My first instinct was actually helpful. I stayed calm enough with Norby that he didn’t take off too. But then I felt it. That wave of fear. That rush of anxiety. That voice in my head.
Because Ollie loose in the desert is one of my bigger fears.
It’s wide open out there. He could disappear fast. He could get caught in a cactus easily. He could get tangled up in the rusty barbed wire fence. His rope or halter could snag on something. He could get hurt. He could be impossible to find.
So I started running through the desert after him.
And as I ran, the chaos around me became chaos within me.
The thoughts came fast.
I can’t believe this is happening.
This is so frustrating.
Why is this happening right now?
I could feel myself slipping into fear, judgment, and victim mode. The more chaotic I became internally, the less clearly I could think externally.
Then something shifted.
I stopped.
I took a breath.
I forgave myself for the fear, for the frustration, for the thoughts racing through my mind.
And I chose again.
That’s when I heard my intuition say, “Go back to the main trail.”
So I did.
I headed back out to the main trail, and there, sitting right in the path, was Ollie’s lead rope, ripped and broken.
He had come that way.
I started down the trail, and sure enough, there he was near the paddock where he lives, right by our friends’ horses, just grazing peacefully on the other side. Almost like he was waiting for us.
Perfectly fine.
A few cacti stuck in him (but that’s pretty normal for him). No injuries. No blood. No disaster. Truly the best-case scenario.
And when I walked up to him, I could feel that he was checking to see if he was in trouble.
I told him, “Hey buddy, it’s okay to be scared.”
Because it is.
Part of being a sentient being is getting scared sometimes.
That applies to horses.
And it applies to you, too.
That whole experience reminded me of something I think is more important now than ever:
You can become an island of peace in a sea of chaos.
And when you do that, your whole world changes around you.
That’s not just a nice idea. It’s life-changing.
It matters because so many people are living with elevated stress right now. In fact, the American Psychological Association reports that nearly 8 in 10 people regularly experience physical symptoms caused by stress. The World Health Organization estimates that depression and anxiety cost the global economy over $1 trillion each year.
In other words, if your body has been carrying tension…
If your mind has been scanning for the next problem…
If the headlines, uncertainty, political unrest, war, rising costs, and constant noise have been getting under your skin…
You’re not imagining it.
There is so much chaos in the world right now.
And you can find more of it almost anywhere you look.
But the deeper question is this:
When chaos shows up, how are you going to show up?
Are you going to feed it?
Absorb it?
Mirror it?
Let it become your inner world?
Or are you going to become the calm in the middle of it?
That doesn’t mean pretending everything is okay.
It doesn’t mean bypassing reality.
It doesn’t mean never feeling fear.
Ollie got scared.
I got scared.
The point is not to never feel scared. The point is not to allow it to turn into chaos.
You notice it, forgive yourself, release what is rising, and choose again.
Simply put: that’s how you become an island of peace in a sea of chaos.
And when you do that, your whole world changes around you.
Your energy changes.
Your clarity changes.
Your nervous system changes.
The way you respond changes.
The way others experience you changes.
That’s exactly why we created the Be an Island of Peace in a Sea of Chaos Challenge. 🏝️
Inside this 5-day guided experience, you’ll learn how to regulate your nervous system, calm spiraling thoughts, protect your energy, and return to yourself when life feels like too much. You’ll learn how to shift from reactivity to resilience, use your breath and body to anchor peace in real time, reframe the stories that keep you stuck in fear, and become a grounded, calming presence for yourself and the people around you.
Because you do not need more noise.
You need tools.
Real ones.
- ✅Tools that help you steady your body.
- ✅Support your mind.
- ✅Protect your energy.
- ✅And become the lighthouse instead of getting lost in the storm.
So if your heart has been craving a calmer, clearer, more grounded way to move through this season, this is your invitation.
Join the Be an Island of Peace in a Sea of Chaos Challenge 🏝️. Early bird pricing is now available.
Join the Challenge
P.S.
Check out what past participants had to say…
“With everything going on in this world, having her messages about how to be an island of peace in a sea of chaos is so very helpful and resonated with me. To have access with a click is like having a lifeline.” – Pam
