Overwhelm is a funny thing.
We all experience it. We all complain about it and allow it to take its toll on our mental, emotional and physical health. Overwhelm is self-inflicted and only a state of mind, yet we still fall victim to it. Perhaps it’s time to manage overwhelm instead of suffering through it.
According to the dictionary, ‘overwhelm’ means to bury or drown beneath a huge mass. Unfortunately, that’s just how it feels when we allow the pressures of life to pile up around us. Life can be an emotional roller coaster and when we don’t deal with these emotions as soon as they arise they can swallow us whole.
Knowing that overwhelm is only a state of mind can enable you to manage it before it takes over your life. You created it by believing that you need to do the umpteen things that swirl around your brain and each thing needs to be done to perfection. They all require your undivided attention.
When the familiar sense of drowning envelops you and you feel the pressure of everything closing in, you need to stop and address it. It’s time to admit to yourself that you do not have the time or the energy to do it all. And that’s okay.
Here are 5 steps to help manage overwhelm
1. Define it.
What exactly are you feeling? Overwhelm is the result of many different emotions so try and define the cause of your overwhelm. Are you worried, fearful, exhausted or anxious? Define precisely what you are feeling and write it down.
2. Think about it.
Ask yourself why you feel this way. Do you think you have too much to do? We tend to take on too much because we think we can do it all. Life has us believing we can multi-task when in fact, the human brain cannot focus on more than one thing at a time. Constantly switching from one task to another is not only challenging and time-consuming, but it is also counterproductive. Thinking that you must do it all is a typical driver of overwhelm.
3. Prioritize it.
Make a list of all the things you think you must do and prioritize them. Seeing everything in writing allows you to focus on one thing at a time. If you prefer online tools, use something like Google calendar and enter each item you need to accomplish into the calendar. Focus only on one thing at a time and once it is completed, change the colour of the entry. This is a great visual tool and gives a feeling of accomplishment when you look back at the day, week and month and see all that you’ve completed.
4. Sleep on it.
Overwhelm can easily rob you of good quality sleep. You may believe that staying up late to do “just one more thing” is the right thing to do but getting a good night’s sleep is far more beneficial for your emotional, mental and physical health. Sleeping on it also helps you make better decisions.
5. Let it go.
Learn to say no to things that don’t matter. This can be difficult if you’re a people pleaser but remember pleasing other people means nothing if you are hurting yourself in the long run. You cannot do it all, and the beauty of it is that you don’t need to, so let that part of you go.
Life is a balance, and it’s sometimes difficult to know what we need to hold on to and what needs to be released, but when we are feeling overwhelmed, something has to give.
Make sure that something isn’t you!
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