6 Best Strategies For When You Feel Overwhelmed at Work and Life
6 Best Strategies For When You Feel Overwhelmed at Work and Life
BY NUKHBA KHAN
Feeling overwhelmed has just become a normal part of life. Either your work is stressful, or your life is not moving as planned, or both. One thing or another leads you to feel like you are drowning under the pressures of life.
Overwhelmed in Life
Overwhelm definitely happens when you have too much on your plate. Work obligations are insane, family responsibilities are never-ending, and personal commitments are equally demanding. You are running at full capacity and just can't keep up with what is expected of you. You feel you are at your breaking point and can't find relief anywhere. You are physically and emotionally overwhelmed.
Emotionally Overwhelmed
And then, there is another type of overwhelm, which is not physical but rather emotional. In this case, you might have manageable responsibilities, i.e., you are not swamped by work and life responsibilities, but you are overwhelmed emotionally. Something in your life is just not right.
Overwhelm and Emotional Paralysis
Now stress is natural and part of everyday life. But when these stressors start feeling like they are too big to be managed, then overwhelm starts creeping in. And when these moments of overwhelm build and build, the real trouble starts because now the overwhelm leaves you feeling depressed, thinking that you can't cope anymore. This causes emotional paralysis where your brain becomes foggy and stops seeing things clearly, making matters worse.
Because of this emotional paralysis, you feel completely overcome by your negative thoughts and emotions.
And that is why it's critical first to find a way to reset your thoughts and emotions and then find a way to tackle the things creating overwhelm in your life.
That is why I have broken the 6 strategies into 2 parts.
QUICK FIXES to help you clear your head (these should be part of your everyday life)
LONG TERM FIX so you can get back to having a more relaxed lifestyle
Quick Fixes for When You Feel Emotionally Overwhelmed
1. PEN TO PAPER: Journaling and writing down your thoughts is the best way to release the pressure and the clutter sitting in your mind. Writing down your thoughts is also a powerful way to start clearing the fog in your mind that does not allow you to think straight when overwhelmed.
Just put that pen to paper and write about whatever comes up, even if it does not make sense. Just write. It is a powerfully liberating experience when you are overwhelmed. Even doing this for 5 minutes every day will help you.
2. GETTING OUTSIDE: Nature has some magical healing and grounding powers. And when you add some movement in nature, it's a sure way to get yourself out of your head and into the body. And gives your overwhelmed mind a break it desperately needs.
So yes, there may be so much going on in your life but adding this one more thing to do is the piece that will help lighten your load both mentally and physically. Don't question it, don't overthink it, and step out and take in the fresh air and release the worries and pressures drowning you.
3.PLAN SOMETHING FUN: I get you are overwhelmed with everything going on in your life. So when I say plan something fun doesn't mean something extravagant that will require a lot of pre-work. Plan some simple yet fun activities. Some ideas to get your brain churning are: a coffee date with a friend, cooking your favorite meal, arts & craft, DIY projects, decluttering your space, yoga class after work, etc.
Planning something and looking forward to doing something fun creates the anticipation that is sometimes even more fun than the actual experience. This helps to shift your focus from events that trouble you to things that actually excite you.
With these easy steps, you create SPACE FOR AN EMOTIONAL TIME OUT FROM YOUR WORRIES. As I mentioned before, intense overwhelm causes your mind to be clouded. With a foggy mind, you can't think straight about how to fix and improve your situation. So the quick or short-term fixes are essential before you start thinking about the longer-term solutions for your overwhelm.
Long Term Fixes for When You Feel Overwhelmed in Life
1. RECOGNIZE IT: The thing about overwhelm is that it slowly creeps into our lives but can quickly explode on us if left unchecked. So the quicker you can recognize and accept it as a problem that needs fixing, the faster you can tackle it.
So make it a habit to catch the feeling of overwhelm when it starts creeping in, and don't wait until it morphs into a more destructive form.
2. PINPOINT THE SOURCE: Okay, so you have recognized and accepted the fact that you are overwhelmed at work or in life. Now, you have to start asking yourself why exactly you are feeling overwhelmed and pinpoint the source of your stress. The thing is when you feel overwhelmed, your thoughts become overbearing as well. The voice in your head is moving at 100 mph, and everything is a hot mess up in the brain.
That is why it's important to start breaking things down. I suggest looking at work and personal life separately to understand what is causing you to feel overwhelmed in each. For both your work and personal life, ask yourself these two questions:
What are the 1-2 things that would remove 70% of your overwhelm if taken off your plate?
What are the 1-2 worries that keep you awake at night?
Yes, sometimes it’s impossible to take things off your plate. But understanding the most significant source of your overwhelm will help you focus on finding the best way forward.
3. TAKE CHARGE: Now you know what exactly is giving you heartache and pain. So that leaves you with some choices of what to do about it. Basically, you have these 3 options.
Can you remove yourself from the situation that is causing you to be overwhelmed? If not …
Can you change your situation? If not, then you are left with one choice ...
Shift your thinking on that situation or figure out the best way to cope with it.
Doesn't this simplify things?
If you can remove or change your situation, then that's great! But if you cannot or at least can't do that immediately, you have to develop a plan on how to best cope with the things that are making you feel beat. You are stronger than you think you are!
Here are some ideas on how to better cope with stress and overwhelm.
I repeat this often, but you need to create BETTER BOUNDARIES around your time and work. This could mean that you:
Try your best to disconnect from work after work. You gotta do what you gotta do! You got this.
Batching your work so you can do focused and productive work.
Learn to say no and push back. Taking care of your mental health is your sole responsibility.
Change the way you think and the words you speak, i.e., LIMIT YOUR OVERWHELM-INDUCING THOUGHTS.
For example, if you have this impossible to-do list for the day and you think you'll never get through this, then this will cause you to feel stressed and hopeless before you even begin. We all know that stress reduces our problem-solving abilities and productivity too. So push yourself to speak more kindly and encouragingly to yourself. So instead, you can say: Yes, this is an extensive list of things to do, but I will stay focused and do my best. And I may not get it all done, so I'll see if I can get some assistance. I will be able to get through.
CHALLENGE YOUR CORE ASSUMPTIONS around the things causing you to feel overwhelmed.
For example, sometimes, we assume more responsibility for ourselves than what is expected of us. I am guilty of thinking that if I messed up at my corporate job, the whole organization would fall apart! Not true. I am also guilty of assuming that my colleagues would question my value if I didn't put up my hand for projects for which I had absolutely no bandwidth.
So take a second to consider what assumptions you might be holding on to that cause overwhelm and are entirely false.
Final Thoughts:
We all feel overwhelmed from time to time. And that is okay. It happens to the best of us! Getting overwhelmed does not mean you are failing in your life. It only means you are human having a human experience. The only thing that is not okay here is to ignore the overwhelm and not do anything about it. Ignoring the problem will only dig your hole deeper. Remember both the short and long-term actions that I have explained in this blog when you feel any onset of overwhelm in your life. And before you know it, you will start having better days in no time!
P.S. Do you feel hopelessly overwhelmed at work or in life? Do you need some help figuring out how to manage your work stressors better? Sometimes, you need a little help figuring out how to implement the best tips in your life.
My one-on-one coaching program can help you create an actionable plan to restore a sense of calm and live a happier life with ease and relaxation.
I am currently taking a selected number of new clients, so check out my 90-day program, Roadmap to Your Happiest Work & Life.
Or drop me an email at: nukhba@projecthappyworklife.com, and we'll schedule a call to see if the program is a good fit for you.
MEET NUKHBA
Hey there, I am Nukhba, a Life Transformation Coach and Mindset Mentor.
I coach women in high-demand careers how to tackle and better manage their work stressors and self-doubts so they can confidently start to enjoy work and restore a sense of calm in their lives.
I know too well that if your work-life is not a happy place, it becomes challenging to be content outside of work also, and chances are you start to hate your life.
I believe we all have the power to live life with more ease and joy.
This blog serves as a space for all things balance, personal empowerment, upgrading habits & beliefs, happier lifestyle and more.