Feeling Overwhelmed with Life

Feeling Overwhelmed with Life – When it all gets too much…

Often we can start to get a sense of things being a little bit out of sync for us and not really give it any thought. Sometimes when we feel like this, the first step is to keep doing what we are doing, but maybe more of it.. and then…. It collapses.

Often at this point we move to negative thoughts.. I can’t cope with this…I can’t do this… I’m a failure. We are so overwhelmed by the enormity of what lies before us that we don’t take a moment to reflect on what is actually happening by being too lost in the emotion of what is happening for us.

At this stage the best course of action is to stop. Just stop. Take a breath. And reset. Here are a few ideas to consider managing that sense of being overwhelmed.

1. Just stop. Walk away for a few moments, take a break and come back with a clearer head.
2. When we become overwhelmed there is a signal sent to the part of our brain that is responsible for our safety – and our fight or flight. When things get too much this part of our brain triggers until we can signal it again that we are safe. And the way we signal safety is through a calming breath. We can’t be in real danger if we breathe calmly.
3. Create a list. Some people prefer pen and paper, for others it’s notes or an app on the phone. Either way .. move all the moving parts from inside your head to outside in a format that you can assess, prioritise and action.
4. Assess your list… is it all really yours? Are there points that you can delegate? Are you taking on other’s responsibilities? What is really your to own and to do?
5. Now you have worked out what on the list is really yours to do, then it’s time to put some priority to it. There are a couple of ways to do this. One is to put everything in order from most important to least. Another is to list the small things you can get off your list quickly to free up time and space for the bigger items. Often is may be a mixture of the two.
6. Pick something off your list. And do it.
7. Ask for help. Recruit your team, whether it be someone to watch the kids for an afternoon, a colleague to bounce some ideas off, a mate to help you complete a task.. get your team behind you.
8. Take the small wins. If it’s getting the lawn mown, folding the washing, or finishing a 6 month long project, take time to reflect on getting something done. When we take time to acknowledge our achievements, however big or small, we actually influence our motivation levels, which leads to more small achievements, or bigger ones… there is nothing like success or breed success.

Putting some things in place to help ‘put the brakes on’, to Reset and start afresh can help get rid of that overwhelmed feeling. Of course, if it does persist, then getting a hand from a professional is always an option.