Starting to Untangle Overwhelm

Welcome to Day 6 of the 3rd Starting to Untangle Draining Habits 7-day Challenge.

Over 7 days, we are bringing awareness to different habits that cause undue stress, suffering or anxiety in our lives. At the end of each post, we share with you one simple step you can take to start to untangle the draining habit.

So far we have brought awareness to self-criticism, procrastination, labels, worrying and the need to always be right.

Today we are going to focus on the habit of overwhelm.

So let’s get started…

Draining Habit #6: Overwhelm

Have you ever had that feeling where the number of tasks on your ‘to-do’ list is completely out of control? Maybe you are continually running late for appointments? Or missing deadlines or important events? Chances are you are familiar with overwhelm and don’t worry, you are definitely not alone! That place of overwhelm is familiar…

Some definitions of overwhelm include –

• “bury or drown beneath a huge mass of something, especially water” ~ Google
• “to overwhelm completely in mind or feeling” ~ Dictionary.com
• “to burden excessively” or “to overpower in mind or feeling” ~ the Free Dictionary.
• “to affect (someone) very strongly” or “to cause (someone) to have too many things to deal with” ~ Learner’s Dictionary.

Anything you would add?

Challenge: Starting to Untangle Overwhelm –

If you have already identified you are overwhelmed, congratulations – awareness and honesty of your situation is the first step. Now to take some action. Self-management is going to help.

How you manage yourself (i.e self-management) is important when starting to untangle overwhelm. According to CASEL, self management is “…the ability to regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviours effectively in different situations.” This includes –

• managing stress,
• controlling impulses,
• motivating oneself and being responsible, and
• being personally accountable and setting and working toward achieving personal and professional goals.

Now you have this awareness, what is your first step? Are you going to find someone to hold you accountable, be more responsible for yourself or manage your relationship with stress?

Feel free to share any questions below or on our Facebook page here.

If you are ready to take yourself on the adventure of getting to know yourself (your true self), why not join the Toolkit? A place where I share tools, inspiration and ideas to live a courageous and openhearted life.