Overwhelmed! Even saying the word out loud makes my heart race a little and my breath become shallow. Words definitely have power. Especially when you are feeling vulnerable, with way too many things to do on your plate. Life is extremely busy now and we have so many demands on our time. It is easy to get lost in taking care of everyone else and putting ourselves last. As counter intuitive as it seems, this is the time to concentrate on self-care.
Overwhelm can also be a symptom of keeping ourselves so busy that we don’t have time to feel or heal through conditioning or a trauma. When we are busy all the time, we mask the emotions that are working their way into our awareness to heal. Feeling overwhelm hides these emotions so we don’t feel the pain. Yet, if we don’t embrace the feelings then we cannot release the pain and will continue to live in the same pattern.
When we are moving so fast and doing so much we are in a constant fight, flight or freeze mode. Feeling overwhelmed is a symptom of the freeze mode. This is our body’s way of trying to protect us. When we don’t take care of ourselves our body instinctively takes care of us anyway. Have you noticed that when you push to get everything done you often get a cold or headache after? This is your body’s way of forcing you to rest. Wouldn’t it be much easier to take care of yourself along the way so that you have energy and enjoyment throughout the process?
I admit that when I started writing this article I felt some overwhelm. I love how I get to experience the topics I am guided to write and share about. This allows me to speak from personal experience. So how do we prevent feeling overwhelmed?
One way is to learn how to say no. The word no is a complete sentence. It requires no explanation, no justification. It is acceptable to take care of yourself and take care of your priorities and say no to things that do not serve you and do not serve your energy.
Another way is to ask for help. Remember how wonderful you feel when you give a gift or when you reach out and help a friend? When you ask for help you are giving the gift of giving to someone else. When you don’t accept help or ask for help you are taking away another person’s joy of giving. Asking for help can be a small as calling a friend for emotional support or asking for someone to pick up your kids after school so you can finish a task. What small step can you take to open the flow of the joy of giving?
Learn to recognize your personal signals that you are feeling overwhelmed and pay attention to your patterns. Do you tend to eat junk food to sooth yourself? Do you watch mindless TV or read late at night? What are your own indicators? When you recognize that you are starting a pattern that will not support you, it is easier to stop it. Be kind to yourself when you see the pattern starting. It is your body’s way of notifying you that you are masking an emotion. Be grateful for the notice and take small steps to modify your behaviors.
Being present is another powerful way to change your energy. Take a few moments, be still and be present. One of my favorite teachers in the art of being present is my cat. Cats are fully in the now. They play, they eat, they sleep and they observe. All of these activities happen without judgment or worry – they just are in the moment. When I get distracted from my mission or am spending too much time in my head, my cats typically will cause a distraction to break whatever I was focused on and bring me back to the present moment. Then they will come sit next to me to help me ground my energy and be present.
When I am in overwhelm, it helps me to make a list of everything I need or feel I need to do. I write down absolutely everything from writing a blog to grocery shopping to meditating. All of those small tasks that take up space in the back of our mind not wanting to be forgotten. There is power in writing them down even though we think will never forget them. Once I have the list then I can prioritize it and schedule it. Not everything needs to be done today or even this week. Once it’s written down and I schedule it into my calendar, it is easier to manage. I tag things by what has absolute due dates and what has flexible due dates so I have the power to rearrange things as necessary when unexpected things come up.
Breath work has been the easiest and most powerful way for me to convert my overwhelm energy into productive energy. I take 3 deep breathes in through my nose and exhale with a “huh” sound through my mouth. This energizes me and frees my thoughts so I am focused and able to clearly see what my priorities are.
Overwhelm is like a sign along the side of the road giving you information about where you are going. Embrace the message, be grateful you recognize the signals and make the choice to move through the energy with ease.
