“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
Confucius
Do you sometimes feel as if everything is spiralling out of control?
Your thoughts.
Your emotions.
Your life.
If you’ve ever felt a deep sense of panic rising and struggled to just catch a breath or take control of your thoughts and emotions, you are not alone.
Sometimes it can feel as if it’s all just too much.
It can feel OVERWHELMING.
When we feel overwhelmed, we are beset by intense emotions that are just too difficult to handle, leading to emotional overload.
You can feel overwhelmed because you are either:
1. Physically just so exhausted
This could be due to lack of sleep, unhealthy eating habits, or high levels of unwavering anxiety/stress.
2. Comparing yourself to others
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Envy is ignorance, imitation is suicide.”
When we compare ourselves to people we look up to or believe have better lives than we do, we devalue ourselves, killing our self-worth.
3. Subordinating to the outside voices
The more we try to please other people, desperately trying to live according to THEIR values, rules, and regulations instead of our OWN, the more overwhelming it feels when we just don’t seem to get there.
As human beings, we want to be true to ourselves, doing the things we want to do, living our lives the way we want to. And, when we feel compelled to live life any other way, to please a partner, friend, family member, or colleague, we beat ourselves up when it doesn’t happen.
4. Having financial worries
Feeling as if you have “more month at the end of your money” instead of “more money at the end of your month,” can definitely feel overwhelming.
More so now, during this festive season, when there is the added pressure of buying gifts for loved ones and spending money on family outings and vacations.
5. Battling to cope with work demands
Whether you run your own business, work for someone else, or are a stay-at-home mum or dad, it can feel overwhelming when there is just so much work to do and not enough time to do it.
6. Allowing negative thoughts to take over your mind
When we allow certain thoughts to enter our mind uncensored, they can wreak havoc, making us feel overwhelmed.
Just recently, a client of mine said that she was experiencing some symptoms in her body. She remembered that a friend of hers had similar (though not exactly the same) symptoms, had been misdiagnosed by doctors, and was much later found to have had a brain tumour that could not be treated.
My client’s mind started to run away with her — all she could think about was the brain tumour that had killed her friend. She kept wondering if she too had a brain tumour.
This endless cycle of worrying thoughts really overwhelmed her.
So, what can you do to better manage this feeling of being overwhelmed?
I have found these tips to be most helpful :
1. Pay attention to the things you saying to yourself and other people
What is your self-talk like? What are you saying to other people?
If you are saying things like:
“I’m just so stressed,”
“I just can’t get to everything,”
“Gosh, this year has just been too much! I just want it to end!”, you are definitely going to feel overwhelmed!
2. Prioritize your work actions
No human being can do everything in a single day!
When you prioritize the most important work-related tasks, you start to feel more in control.
Making a list of your highest priority action steps for the day and ticking them off as you complete them, will give you a sense of accomplishment.
3. Change your relationship with money
Instead of allowing money to overrule your life, rather make different decisions — choose to save some of your money.
If you are planning on a December family vacation or getaway, start saving money from the beginning of the year to avoid feeling overwhelmed come November.
4. Give yourself permission to be yourself
You are absolutely fabulous as you are now!
You are unique. You are extraordinary. You are here to make an impact on the world in your own way, using your own special talents.
So, please just give yourself permission to be true to who you are.
5. Stop comparing yourself to others
Comparing yourself to other people is unfair to the magnificent being that you already are.
When you look at a person and think, “I wish I could be more like that,” or “I wish my life was more like that,” you are only seeing one side — the positive side of that person’s life.
You do not know what the other side is like.
6. Look after yourself
When you get adequate sleep (at least 7 to 8 hours a night), eat healthily, exercise regularly, and manage the stress in your life, you will find that it becomes much easier to minimize any feelings of being overwhelmed.
7. Remind yourself of all the good in your life
Instead of only focusing on the challenges, obstacles, and difficulties in your life, make it a habit to take some time out of your day to just remind yourself of all the good things.
Work on developing an attitude of gratitude.
I know just how difficult it can be to manage these feelings of being overwhelmed.
To feel as if your thoughts and emotions cannot be controlled no matter what you do.
To feel as if you are just about drowning in them.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
There IS a better way to do life.
“Watch my video where I talk about feeling overwhelmed and what to do about it”.
Drop me an email at ilze@ilzealberts.com or whatsapp if you are wanting to learn how to better manage your thoughts and emotions and really start making the most out of life.
Your best life awaits you, arms wide open.
From my heart to yours,
