Everyone has felt overwhelmed at some point in their life and many people feel overwhelmed most of the time. When you’re feeling overwhelmed, typically you have too many responsibilities + demands and you feel unable to deal with them or keep up, causing you to feel like you’re always behind.
You have way too much on your plate and you’re drowning in your to do list and this can lead to a temporary loss of self esteem, depression, exhaustion and burnout. You may feel trapped in a never ending cycle of stress and confusion. I know that when you’re overwhelmed it can be hard to fit even one more thing into your schedule. I’m sharing a few simple ways to help yourself manage the feeling of being overwhelmed.
How To Stop Feeling Overwhelmed
journaling
Journaling helps you explore your thoughts, emotions and to-do list so they’re not swirling around and around in your mind causing you to feel more overwhelmed.
The “morning pages” created by Julia Cameron is a common method of journaling that can be used as a daily morning practice. To do this, fill three pages with long hand, stream of consciousness writing, first thing in the morning to dump whatever is rattling around in your brain.
Here is a list of more journal prompts to help you uncover and shift your stressors and anxieties:
- Write down a list of your duties + demands.
- Is there anything you can delegate?
- Is there anything that can be removed or postponed?
- What can you say no to?
- How can you make your life easier/less demanding?
TIP: Write out your to do list for the day and only focus on that! One day at a time! Be Present!
bach flower therapy
Bach Flower Therapy is one of the energy medicine modalities I use to help people relieve stress and anxiety. I offer 1:1 sessions with clients, but the Bach Flower Remedies were created as a self help system so that anyone can use them with ease.
The Bach Flower Remedy that can help relieve symptoms of feeling overwhelmed is called ELM. It’s a common remedy I suggest to many clients because most people have so much on their plate these days… juggling career, family, fun and self care.
The positive potential of taking the flower remedy ELM is that it can help you get back to your normal self, so problems are seen in perspective, giving you the ability to cope with your to-do list in a healthy way and set limits on how much responsibility you can take on… while most importantly taking time to tend to your own needs.
Purchase Bach Flower Remedies on their website here.
Affirmations
Affirmations are a great way to help you feel more positive and motivated, reduce anxiety and improve the ability to problem solve.
When you’re feeling overwhelmed, there’s a tendency to think of everything you need to do all at once, including the day, week and month ahead.
Becoming more present helps you prioritize your to-do list, thinking about your immediate responsibilities and goals. To remind yourself of this concept, say to yourself quietly or out loud.. “ I AM PRESENT”. Follow with a nice slow, deep breath.
guided meditation
Guided Meditation is a calming experience that helps remind you to connect with yourself in a more peaceful way, giving you the ability to prioritize your demands, goals and self care in a healthy way.
Try my guided meditation called I AM PRESENT, to help you feel more calm and present:
Trying to integrate one or all of these simple suggestions can help you find creative problem solving solutions and start to shift your priorities so you will feel more able to handle them efficiently.
“A woman who lives with the stress of an overwhelmed schedule will often ache with the sadness of an underwhelmed soul.” – Lysa Terkeurst