Are You Feeling Overwhelmed?
You know those days where you quite literally might have paced a hole in the floor if it were possible? People in this day and age seem to be having many of more of those days than normal. The laundry list of things to do starts to pile up like a bad episode of Hoarders. Overwhelm is no joking matter.
Anxiety and fatigue start to set in. We become irritable and grumpy or just plain exhausted.
There was a simpler time when the world seemed to turn just a little slower. Life was sailing along at a more relaxed pace.
Not that people of every era didn’t have worries, but today, people’s coping mechanisms seem to have a default to panic and worry like never before. We are seeing mounting cases of anxiety and depression. More concerning is that we are seeing it in younger and younger people all the time.
How Do I Get Rid of Overwhelm?
The good news is that overwhelm both chronic and acute, is usually caused by bad habits. And bad habits can be worked on. I have compiled a list of new habits that generally help with conquering overwhelm and mild anxiety or stress.
[bctt tweet=”We all need a little more sanity and happiness on a more regular basis!” username=””]
Small changes can bring significant strides in lowering your stress levels and beating the overwhelm that piles up with our daily grind. So if you’d like some tips and tweaks for beating the overwhelm keep reading 🙂
7 Tips to Reduce Overwhelm
- Leave work at work. When you check out on your Friday, no matter what that day might be, unplug from the job. Some people make a big list of excuses for why they supposedly “cannot” do this. Trust me the cost is too great. Your weekend is your time. Time to pamper, sleep, recover, spend time with family, whatever it is you should be giving attention to outside of your job.
Don’t let the source of your income overrun your life. Family especially need you to disconnect from work. Even better if you can do this on weeknights as soon as you leave the job site.
- Remember you are not psychic. Much overwhelm results from relational stress. When we are trying to guess what others are thinking.
Will our boss give us that promotion? Is my daughter happy in the new class I signed her up for? Will my husband be supportive of my new exercise and diet plan? Stop battering yourself with the “what if’s” and just ask. The stress of worrying about every possible scenario or outcome is enough to bring on the wrinkles at warp speed.
You Can Reduce Your Stress and Overwhelm Using Small Steps
- Use a healthy escape. Slow your roll. Sometimes it’s okay to just plop down on the couch and read your favorite book. Take off and go for a long walk in the woods. Spend an evening alone with your significant other. Play some games with the kids. You are allowed to drop your responsibilities on occasion to clear your mind. People sometimes put themselves into an unnecessary time crunch. Be productive when you need to be and relax when you need to relax.
- Be Tidy, Be Mighty. If you are tackling a big chore or project it is imperative that you clean and declutter your work area. If you are writing an ebook, have just your computer and your outline sitting nearby. Painting your living room? Clean it up and have all the necessary tools ready and available so the project goes quickly and efficiently.
[bctt tweet=”The stress of worrying about every possible outcome is enough to bring on the wrinkles at warp speed. ” username=””]
- Turn it Off. Whatever your project is, you need to step away from the phone. Cellphones are a serious addiction these days. I picture rehab centers for the electronically dependent in our near future. I actually know people who start to have a full-blown panic attack if they have misplaced their phone.
Certainly, phones are so much more than just phones nowadays. They are our address books, planners, computers, game players, etc all rolled into one. But they are also a distraction from spending quality time with others, quality time focused on projects, or even just drifting off to sleep uninterrupted. Remember the days when people had to phone your house and leave a msg? Trust me, just power down once in a while.
- Set Some Boundaries. Some people just don’t know how to say no. If you are involved in anything you do not enjoy, gracefully quit. Don’t continue to stretch yourself thin and miserable fulfilling obligations or expectations that aren’t aligned with your happiness. Maybe you are a member of a board that meets twice a month. You think you should just stay. It’s only a few hours out of your month but on the same token, you don’t get to see your spouse on those evenings because the meetings run late and you aren’t passionate about the position in the first place. Quit. Maybe it’s that you spend your time chauffering your children from one activity to the next and have no time to stay home and keep up with tasks.
- Stop Procrastinating on “That Thing”. Most of us have at least one to-do that has been simmering on the back burner for some time. Neglected and growing like weeds in a beautiful flower garden. Just conquer and get it over with already.
Tension is bad. Bad for our health, bad for our relationships, bad for our inner peace. So if it’s a difficult conversation, get it over with. A mounting pile of stuff in the garage, go work on it for 30 minutes. Not tomorrow, today. A job that needs quitting, write your notice and fill out some applications.
Goodbye Overwhelm, Hello Happy, Positive, and Optimistic Me
If you want to live in a happy, positive environment, you have to cultivate the space for it. To be able to stay positive it is essential to have influences in your life that support you and lift you up instead of dragging you down.
[bctt tweet=”If you want to live in a happy, positive environment, you have to cultivate the space for it” username=””]
This includes media, activities, people, and even places. So who are a few people who might bring you down when you’re around them? How about negative news or other media sources that leave you feeling less than stellar? (That one person who supposedly has the perfect life on FB, yeah right insert huge eye roll here).
Now think about how the time you save cutting these people or activities could be better spent. Maybe you could start your day with yoga or meditation. Go to lunch with that one friend who always makes you laugh, or get more time in with the person you love. I hope these tips help you cultivate some counteractive habits to your overwhelm. Thanks for stopping by!
xoxo-Deanna
Related Post: Reset Your Mindset for Happiness