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Neha Kaushik, Low Entropy Volunteer Writer

Survival is a glorious concept. It represents courage, strength, resilience and all things powerful (well, depending on your definition of powerful). In closed circles, one can often hear, “You made it through the day, you survived it, you should be proud. Give yourself credit, go easy on yourself.”

A lot of us do . . . we survive. Over and over again. Some or many of us fail to notice the transition from “I survived, I am proud” to “I am surviving, isn’t that enough?” Yes, it is enough in perpetual terms if you are a rock. A rock will tell you the story of each age it survived through its scars, layers and composition. A rock makes it through the day . . . every day.

Hardships have a side-effect—a faulty survival mode. You face difficult times long enough, you slip into survival mode without understanding that it needs to switch off at some point. Do you carry tension in your shoulders and neck? Are your shoulders raised without you realising? Clenched fists? That sinking feeling in your gut—how many times a day do you feel it? How many times do you think, if everything is fine then why doesn’t it feel like it should? You could find a solution if you knew the problem. You were never told that survival mode is the problem. Survival mode is built into our genes. But it’s meant to be regulated, and must have physical and mental standards to adhere to in order to be healthy.

We are not walking through Jurassic Park every day (it may feel that way, but it really isn’t). Humans occupy the highest echelon of the food chain. Ironically, we built a system where we now go into survival mode because of each other.

High-paying jobs, degrees from prestigious institutions, flawless relationships and seamless work-life balance—you have to be perfect, and you can’t be perfect. We all know that, like any other idea, perfection is subjective! Chase it to the end of the world and the finish line will always move. Always. With immense pressure to do everything right, to have a set belief about what ideal looks like and never attaining that ideal, it’s no wonder that simply surviving the day feels like an accomplishment in and of itself. If you were a rock, this would be absolutely fine, but you are a human who has the choice and capability to pick that rock up and put it aside. It can go on surviving and you can move ahead and thrive!

When we talk about simply “getting through the day,” there’s often an undercurrent of emotional pain behind it. Life can be hard—overwhelming at times—and for some, the mere act of surviving the day is a testament to their inner strength. People living with depression, anxiety or other mental health conditions often measure their day-to-day success differently from those who aren’t burdened by these challenges (seemingly . . . because what do you really know about someone else’s life).

For someone who battles anxiety, getting through a social event without breaking down is a win. For those dealing with depression, getting out of bed and having a shower can be a monumental effort. There is immense value in recognizing these small victories, especially in periods of mental health crisis. It’s about survival, and for many, that is enough.

Practically speaking, lowering expectations can sometimes be crucial to managing mental health. Consider someone juggling multiple responsibilities—work, family, personal challenges. Faced with burnout, continuing to push at full speed can worsen their mental and physical state. This is where lowering the bar becomes a practical act of self-preservation.

In these moments, scaling back can create space for healing. Instead of aiming to excel at everything, we learn to focus on what is most important and manageable. This might mean taking time off from work, seeking help from family or delegating responsibilities.

Moreover, lowered expectations create a sense of accomplishment. When every action feels overwhelming, breaking down tasks into smaller, achievable goals can provide a sense of control and success. These practical adjustments aren’t a sign of failure, but rather an adaptive response to stress and emotional difficulty. In these moments, making it through the day really can be enough.

However, the danger lies in believing that survival is all we are capable of. There’s a delicate balance between allowing oneself to recover and settling into a pattern where simply surviving becomes the ceiling.

There is an emotional toll of living perpetually in survival mode. In the long run, perpetual lowered expectations can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. When we tell ourselves that just making it through the day is all we can expect, that’s all we become.

In pursuit of making it through, we might abandon our deeper desires for meaning, connection and personal growth. So, is making it through the day enough? In some cases, absolutely. But once we’ve made it through the hard days, it’s important to remember that we are capable of more—capable of thriving, even when it feels distant. 

Lower your expectations when you need to. Give yourself grace. Remember that you are worthy of more than just making it through the day. 

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