The antidote to November overwhelm

First, it gets a little busier at work. Then, you’re skipping lunch. The kids announce they’re starring in the school play and need you to make elaborate costumes, pronto. And that reminds you – Christmas is on the horizon, and you haven’t even thought about what to buy for your nine nieces and nephews without breaking the bank. Money is tight. Time is scarce. You can’t recall your last free day, and self-care seems a distant, abstract concept.

Cue overwhelm

This time of year, the calendar starts to bulge with outings and obligations, work deadlines and family duties. On top of that, it can be a period of heightened emotions and personal reflection, adding to the stress.

It’s natural to feel a little flummoxed.

But while you can’t control what happens ‘out there’, you can manage your internal landscape, reframing overwhelm and taking steps to reduce stress.

Fight, flight or fall in a heap

After all, ‘overwhelm’ has implications for your wellbeing. Feeling strung out and spread thin activates the fight or flight response, raising levels of adrenaline and cortisol, reducing immunity and digestion, and even impairing your ability to think.

It’s a vicious cycle that can persist long after the stressful event has passed.

So, how do you overcome overwhelm and stay calm? Is it possible to feel serene on the inside, even when things are hectic on the outside?

We think it is, with the help of a few simple practices.

Step back from social media

Social media is information; a constant stream of events, pictures, opinions and happenings. When you’re in the thick of a busy, stressful period, the last thing you need is a tsunami of information crashing into your conscious mind. As well as that, social media promotes comparison and insecurity, making everyone else’s lives appear more interesting than your own. It’s a recipe for anxiety. It’s an amplifier of stress. It’s a great idea to take a break.

Speak a different language

What is overwhelm? It’s not something you can hold or catch, like a virus. Instead, it’s an experience. It’s a product of your mind (with physical consequences). Without taking away from the legitimacy of these feelings, there’s something to be said for changing the story. By using different language to describe what you’re going through, you can shift your reality. For example, instead of saying ‘I’m overwhelmed’, say, ‘I have a lot of things to do right now, but I’m confident I’ll get through them – one step at a time’. Rather than saying, ‘ARGH! I’m so STRESSED!!!’, challenge yourself to stop, breathe, and tell yourself, ‘I’m OK.’ By gently bringing yourself back to the present, you can stop feeling so anxious about the future.

Ponder the past

Speaking of the future, a helpful tool in reducing feelings of overwhelm is to ponder the past. Remind yourself of times you’ve felt stressed; like you weren’t ever going to achieve your to-dos… but of course, you did. Remember those days you couldn’t see a way through the tasks at hand, but still managed to survive? You came out the other side. You persisted and succeeded, even when things appeared insurmountable. By acknowledging, ‘This too shall pass’, you put present stress into perspective.

Break it down

Kai-zen is a principle of breaking big tasks down into small, manageable, bite-sized pieces. It’s a wonderful way to avoid staring like a stunned mullet at a huge pile of to-dos, and instead, create small and non-stressful steps to achieve them. For example, allocate 10 minutes per day to planning Christmas, five minutes per morning to meditation, or 20 minutes each afternoon to sit down and write as much of that project/report/analysis as possible, plugging away daily rather than leaving tasks to the last minute. You’ll significantly reduce feelings of overwhelm and increase your productivity.

Manage expectations

Overwhelm is exacerbated by fear of letting others down, or missing a deadline. Instead, practice under-promising and over-delivering, building in more time than you think you’ll need for certain tasks, and (ideally) exceeding expectations. Another way of managing expectations is to be honest and upfront with friends, family or colleagues, letting them know your schedule is full, and they’re going to have to wait a while. In most cases, you’re the one putting the most pressure on yourself – and people are happy to sit tight until you’re ready.

Do nothing

If you’re hugely overwhelmed and just want to say, ‘ENOUGH!’ – why don’t you? In fact, what would happen if you did nothing? If you put off a job, deleted a task, or stayed in bed? In most cases, life would carry on. In some cases, people might be momentarily annoyed, but forget about it the next day. It’s important to give yourself a break if you simply can’t achieve everything. Things might work themselves out naturally, someone else may step in, or the stressful period will pass without you having to do anything at all.

We hope you’re spending November getting excited for the year’s end, surrounded by family and friends. And if you need a little guidance or wellness support, don’t hesitate to get in touch to see how chiropractic care can better equip your nervous system to handle busy, stressful times.