What to do when you’re feeling overwhelmed …

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The feeling of being overwhelmed is not something unique to those of us living in the 21st century, but it just might be easier to feel overwhelmed in our modern world.

Consider, for example, the following choices at your typical American supermarket or Big Box store:

    • Crest toothpaste: 27 varieties.
    • Campbell’s condensed soup: 53 varieties.
    • Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice: eight sizes, from 8 to 128 ounces.
    • Breyers ice cream or frozen dairy dessert: Natural, French, Half the Fat, No Sugar Added, Extra Creamy, Homemade, Lactose Free, CarbSmart (and that’s just for vanilla ice cream).

And those are the simple things in life!

There are a wide variety of reasons why someone today might feel overwhelmed. I can’t speak specifically to each situation here, but let me give you some solid general steps you can take in most cases when feeling overwhelmed:

1. Breathe. By the time we’re actually experiencing the feelings of being overwhelmed, we’ve likely let our emotions take control and are now experiencing a physical response. When we become anxious or nervous, our breathing quickens, becomes more shallow, and becomes more like a pant. This results in poor oxygenation of the body, and can lead to what is commonly known as a “panic attack.” So the first thing you should do when feeling overwhelmed is consciously check your breathing and purposely take a few minutes to breath deeply. Take a deep breath in, and then release it v e r y slowly, then repeat a few times. Changing your breathing to slower and deep should help alleviate some of the initial physical feelings of being overwhelmed.

2. Pray. Now that you’re breathing better and no longer headed toward panic, take time to talk with God, which is what prayer is. God cares about the smallest details of your life, and certainly is concerned if you’re feeling overwhelmed. He invites you to bring all your troubles to Him, so stop and talk with God about what is happening in your life at that moment.

3. Refresh your thinking. At the root of your feeling overwhelmed is the content of your thoughts — your “self-talk” — which is what you’re saying to yourself at that moment. If you’re saying to yourself over and over, “I can’t handle this,” “This is overwhelming!” “This is too much!” you’ll begin to feel what you’re saying and will spiral downward in your emotions and become overwhelmed. So much of what we say to ourselves are irrational thoughts and cognitive distortions (patterns of irrational thinking), so if you stop and “refresh” your thinking to make sure your self-talk is rational, you will generate corresponding emotions rather than feelings of being overwhelmed.

4. Reassess your plan … or make one! Trying to carry out plans that have you overloaded and expect too much is a formula for feeling overwhelmed. You might need to reassess your plan to make sure it’s realistic, or at least a “reasonable” stretch and not something that is irrational and unrealistic. Then adjust your plan! Others become overwhelmed because life is busy and they have failed to organize themselves or formulate any plan of action and then quickly find themselves overwhelmed. Making time to bring some order, and perhaps a plan, into your life can help alleviate feelings of being overwhelmed.

5. Seek wise counsel. Perhaps you thought you had a good plan for yourself but then quickly found yourself overwhelmed. Seeking wise counsel regarding your plans can help you avoid irrationalities or lack of reality in your planning you may have overlooked that others will spot quickly.

6. Check your lifestyle. How you live will support your plans or cause you to stumble. You may need to make adjustments in your spiritual, mental, emotional, physical, and/or social life so that your lifestyle promotes a capacity for you to succeed rather than contradict your efforts.

7. Keep moving forward. It’s not uncommon for a person to “freeze” once they’ve begun to feel overwhelmed. It’s important not to become stuck or withdraw, but to continue to move forward, even if one step at a time. When you can make one step forward, it can be motivation for a second and then third step forward.

8. Have a support system. Life is to big and too difficult to navigate alone. We all need the support of someone, whether it’s family, friends, church family, etc. Others can help us maintain our faith, stay rational and realistic, and can encourage and/or correct us as needed so that we don’t become overwhelmed with all that comes with living life in the 21st century.

A final note — if you find yourself regularly feeling overwhelmed, or unable to shake the feelings of being overwhelmed, then please seek the help of a competent Christian mental health professional.

Scotty