I’m Overwhelmed, I Don’t Know What To Do Anymore

“I am overwhelmed, exhausted and at the limit of my strength . ” Many people today express this regret, which, after all, is still an attempt to ask for help. Negative thoughts that do not stop, worries that suffocate, external pressures, internal anguish and the clear feeling that each day they feel more cornered in their emotional labyrinths.

What can be done in these situations? Give us a break? The truth is that, although necessary, days of calm and peace do not always solve the root of the problem or the anxious mind. Because behind the feeling of being overwhelmed is anxiety and that psychological burden that leaves us without resources. The overwhelmed person runs the risk of losing control, having to face situations that produce greater wear and tear each time.

What is the best strategy at those times? At present, it is very common to be identified with this type of realities. We analyze them.

I am mentally and emotionally overwhelmed: what can I do?

I am overwhelmed, overwhelmed, collapsed … We tend to use flowery terminology to define a state that can be simply summarized as mental exhaustion. This exhaustion is determined by feeling that external demands exceed our ability to cope and resolve. In other words, the state of “overwhelmed” occurs when we assess that we do not have sufficient resources to meet the demands of the environment.

However, in the current context, many more factors also arise than those mentioned. Before us we have a situation in which fear, constant change and the shadow of an uncertain future navigate. The first thing to understand is that feeling overwhelmed is a normal and understandable response to a challenging scenario. We should not sanction ourselves or further fuel negativity by blaming ourselves for feeling this way.

Let’s understand a little better these processes and the strategies that we should apply.

When we focus our attention excessively on negative facts

“Today I will not be able to meet the objectives at work. My partner doesn’t understand me. Future expectations are horrible. Everything is going wrong ” . We do not realize it, but sometimes our mental focus only focuses on the most adverse aspects and the mind becomes exhausted, exhausted.

Thus, a study carried out at the University of Zhejiang (China) showed the way in which mental exhaustion affects neuronal connectivity. That is, the greater the fatigue and emotional collapse, the greater the failures in the neural connectivity of different regions of the brain.

What does this translate to? Basically in mental confusion, in memory loss, difficulties in solving problems, reflecting…. What also happens is that the feeling of having reached the limit is further increased. It is the whiting that eats the tail, with greater concern, greater exhaustion and fewer resources to face the situation; therefore, discomfort rises.

What can we do?

We cannot ignore that things are increasingly difficult today; however, we must process them in a more constructive and less anxious way. Challenges are not walls, they are barriers to overcome with ingenuity and skill.

If you feel overloaded, organize your time better. If you think your partner doesn’t understand you, tell them what you need: people can’t guess what happens to us if we don’t tell them. Dialogue.

On the other hand, there is nothing as dangerous as telling us that everything is going wrong. Specify and specify what is not going well and look for solutions. If we magnify and generalize, we block ourselves.

Accept changes and uncertainties with a plan

“I am overwhelmed, I do not know what is going to happen tomorrow and that overwhelms me.” These types of thoughts are a constant in times of uncertainty, the brain needs certainties, elements to hold on to, knowing that what we take for granted today will continue to be within our grasp tomorrow. Changes always subject us to sudden challenges that we feel unprepared for, and something like that further increases mental exhaustion.

What can we do?

Accept, understand and assume that you cannot have control over everything. Uncertainty is part of life, that point of unmanageable chaos that escapes our hands and a variable that, at times, distorts our projects. Assume this reality and its problems but do not do it with resignation.

If I am overwhelmed the best I can do is think about what options I have and create a route plan.  The first thing is to realize my fears: am I afraid of losing my job? Then you should look for alternatives. Do I worry about my family, my partner, do I worry about my children? What worries me excessively needs to be addressed today.

I’m overwhelmed, I carry too many things on me

I am overwhelmed because there are many pressures that I have in my head. Responsibilities and infinite tasks to fulfill fall on me. In addition, my mind does not accompany me, I feel fear, anxiety, frustration, sadness …

Faced with this internal world, overwhelming in every way, there is only one strategy: stop multitasking and tackle each thing one at a time. If you have many concerns, break them down and give them a solution. If you experience emotional chaos, identify each emotion in that inner whirlwind and name it, make room for it, and understand the message it wants to give you.

In difficult times it is useless to want to cover everything at once. You have to know how to prioritize, go step by step, be aware of what we feel and of everything that happens inside and outside of us. We must change the expectation that everything must be completed, fulfilled and fixed right now, because otherwise …

Let’s eliminate that last variable; that of fear. Let us understand that to do things well it is better to go slowly and do them one by one. Something like this will offer us a greater sense of control and well-being. Let’s bear it in mind, feeling overwhelmed is another symptom of anxiety and we can face it, manage it. ..