The Secret to Relieving Overwhelm

Last week I heard so many of my clients and others say that they felt overwhelmed. I decided it would be a good blog subject.

Twenty years or so ago, at the dawn of the electronic age, people were prophesying that less paper and more technology would free us to work less and pay more attention to the most important things in our lives. Unfortunately, those predictions seem to be untrue. People today seem more overwhelmed than ever! I hear them struggling to “keep their heads above water.”

I did a little research on the definition…Overwhelm means TOO MUCH!

Overwhelm means to give a person too much of something; to completely overcome or take over, become engulfed; submerged.

 If someone is overwhelmed by an emotion, they feel it so strongly that they can’t think clearly.

Too much to do-- too little time to do it--too many people making demands upon your time.

Does this sound familiar?

Since overwhelm entails feeling too much, life usually feels difficult or like a struggle!

So take some things AWAY…

SIMPLIFY!! Ask yourself, “What can I let go of?”

Stay open to the Possibilities, Keep your Energy High, and your Thoughts Positive!

Here are my four tips to help relieve your overwhelm:

1. Learn to say no
You overwhelm yourself by over committing. Think about what you can release from your schedule to make time for the extra requests that arise. If you have no choice but to take on extra demands, learn how to delegate anything that will distract you from your most important tasks or intentions.

2. Let go of Negative Thoughts—Think Positively!
Your thoughts can’t hold any power over you if you don’t let yourself own them or ‘be’ them. If you notice yourself having a negative thought, detach from it, witness it, and accept that that’s the way you feel. That negative thought has no power over you, and you don’t have to continue to feel that way. Choose to let it go and choose to have a better feeling thought.

3.Take Good Care of Yourself
It’s much easier to be positive when you are eating well, exercising, and getting enough rest. Become an earlier riser. Even if you don’t consider yourself a morning person, get up a bit earlier every day (10-15 minutes) and make a point of doing something good for yourself. Research shows that it takes 21-28 days of repetition to form a habit, so it will only take 3-4 weeks for you to become an earlier riser doing good things for yourself.

4. Remind Yourself of the Things You Are Grateful For
Stresses and challenges don’t seem quite as bad when you are constantly reminding yourself of the things that are right in life. Taking just 60 seconds a day to stop and appreciate the good things will make a huge difference. One idea that a lot of ultra successful people do is start a gratitude journal and they write in it every day – at least 5 things they’re grateful for. If you decide to do this, do it faithfully for 21-28 days – and then, the next time you feel down, take 15 minutes and read through it. I dare you to still feel overwhelmed after reading it.

From Carol Tuttle’s Soulprint Healing Course…

Let go of these thoughts:

I am overwhelmed
This is hard
I can’t keep up with this
I’m tired and worn out
I have to settle for less
I have to get by
It’s just too much
I have too much to do
I can’t keep up with it
I’m going to fail since I can’t keep up with the pace

Choose these thoughts:

I am free
I am at ease
I am allowing
I am at peace
It is happening
All is well
I am ready