I know so many people who have been struggling with overwhelm recently, myself included.
Life just feels non-stop at times? Or most of the time, right?
Sometimes I can feel the overwhelm creeping up; the feeling of restlessness, the fuzzy brain, feeling irritable and the bubbling sensation of anxiety in my tummy.
Other times it just hits me full on, no warning, no particular build up. Just overwhelm.
Now before I go on, I’m not going to sit here and say I have the magic solution to help you deal with your overwhelm. I hate to break it to you but the reality is there is no magic solution for two reasons.
The first is we are all different; we experience things differently and therefore what works for me won’t necessarily work for you.
Secondly what we need in this moment of overwhelm may be different from the last period of overwhelm or the circumstances we are in right now might mean we have to handle things differently; for example experiencing overwhelm when I had my salon is very different to now when there are arguably less pressure, but on the other hand I don’t have a team around me to delegate too.
‘So whats the point of this blog post if you don’t have the answers!’ I hear you say.
Well because I want to encourage you to find the answer for yourself. After all that’s what a coach does! Only you know what is right for you in this moment.
Also, knowing you have the answers for yourself and that you can help and support yourself is so empowering!
Ultimately I want to let you know that if you too are feeling overwhelmed at the moment, that you are not alone. And that there are ways you can support yourself during this time to help you find a little ease.
The first step is to acknowledge where you’re at, instead of ignoring or pushing through.
Then enquiry within yourself what is going to help you in this moment.
Want to know the final step? Do they thing that you identify with help you. Thinking it is not enough! Work out how and when you are going to do the thing you’ve identified will help you, and make a promise to yourself that you will do it.
You might be interested in reading my other blog post about things that have been helping my overwhelm recently. Have a read here.
Exercise:
If you’re struggling to know how to help yourself try this exercise from my brilliant friends The Positive Planners.
- Take and A4 sheet of paper, turn it landscape and draw a line in the centre vertically and then horizontally so you have a 4 boxes.
- Then with your pen scribble and swirl all over the page, keeping it loopy. This is a good chance to release any frustrations!
- In the top left hand box write ‘I am feeling’. The top right hand box write ‘This is because’. The bottom right box write ‘what will help’. Finally the bottom left box write ‘Plan’
- Using the spaces in your squiggles work through each box. It’s a great exercise for gaining clarity and a plan for moving forward.
- If you need more help with this go to The Positive Planner Instagram page here and find the braintangle section of their story highlights.
