Dealing with being overwhelmed

[Into The Light]

i struggle with at times feeling overwhelmed, feeling like too much is being asked of me, as a result there is major irritability on my part, and i get short and snap at people.

does anyone have any suggestions on how to cope with the perceived overload? i don't want to be this irritable, short fused person when objectively my environment hasn't changed. i want to stop feeling the overload, and if that isn't possible, i need to learn to deal with it in a better way.

 

[Retired]

Whenever I feel overwhelmed, it's because I have too much to do, or too many things planned without enough time for them.

I try to limit the number of commitments I take on, but sometimes unexpected things come up.

Can you shed some of the load, by way of delegating other family members to take over some of the tasks?

Have you discussed this with your doctor? Sometimes, depending on the diagnosis, other meds can be added to relieve the situational anxiety experienced when one feels overwhelmed. Or your doctor may suggest non medicinal strategies you could adopt to deal with the situational anxiety.

 

[Lana]

Another way of learning to deal with an overload is learning to say "No". That includes saying No to yourself when you push yourself to do something that was not asked of you specifically. Often, it is easier to focus on someone else instead of delving into your own issues and that urge needs to be kept in check or your own emotions will overwhelm you.

Also, scheduling time out for yourself or to do your favorite things to diffuse can help. Getting a good nights sleep and good nutrtion also help so your body and mind can function with high efficiency. And knowing when to walk away from stressfull situations. When you catch yourself getting snippy, zip it and politely excuse yourself and take a few minutes to diffuse before doing anything else.

 

[ladylore]

Even though I do live alone I have started to take some 'me' time first thing in the morning. During this time I get ready and have a relaxing cup of coffee before the computer goes on or any other worldly things.

I also had a friend with kids. The kids knew that on weekends she was not to be disturbed until 8 or 8;30. Kids were old enough to get their own breakfast, so this time was time for her and her partner.

Another suggestion is to start telling people that you will get back to them on that for whatever they are asking you. That way you can really think things through before committing to anything. Its also good to know that it is always ok to change your mind. There are very few things in life that we can't switch to a different course of action.

 

[Halo]

ITL,

Thank you for posting such a good question, although sorry to hear that you are having to deal with being overwhelmed. There seems to be a lot of great insight and suggestions posted and don't really have anything else to add.

I really appreciate everyones suggestions as I think a lot of them that I may be able to apply to my own life, especially the one about saying No. Thanks

 

[Into The Light]

it's just hard feeling this way when i don't want to be this way. i feel like there isn't much i can do about it. i guess i just don't want the feeling overwhelmed part to even happen. the trouble is sometimes i can't seem to take anything, no matter how minor. i do try to take time for myself but once that time is over and i go back to things, nothing has changed and i still just feel overwhelmed.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

I've had moments like that recently too, ITL. What I generally find works well for me is to stop for a second and mentally (or sometimes on paper) prioritize what needs to be done or what's stressing me. Then I look at the top item on the list and ask myself is there's anything I can do today that will help with that item - if yes, I work on it and ignore everything else on the list until it's done; if no, I move on to the next item on the list and repeat the process.

Basically, this means that no matter how many items are on the list I'm never working at more than one thing at a time so it doesn't feel overwhelming.

 

[Halo]

ITL,

I was thinking about your post today and wondering if you are really feeling overwhelmed with too much to do or whether it is more of a feeling of being irritated with people around you and just wanting to be left alone?

I know for me when I get irritable and short with people it is not necessarily about feeling overwhelmed with actual things to do but more about just having that feeling of wanting to be left alone and having too many interruptions by people.

Just a thought.

Take care
:hug: :hug:

 

[sister-ray]

ITL,

If people are putting on you and making you feel this way then the best thing is to just switch off tell them no and think about yourself. Ive changed my way of thinking, I do what I feel ok doing now, its not worth being hassled by people and feeling ill because of it, just do what you want and feel able to and leave the rest, do it later when you feel up to do. Take care of yourself, look after yourself and dont worry about others, its you that matters not them

 

[Into The Light]

[...] or whether it is more of a feeling of being irritated with people around you and just wanting to be left alone?

you've hit it right there. it's having to interact when my brain can't take the bombardment. not that it is in actual fact a bombardment of people talking to me but it is how i experience it. i do feel overwhelmed by having to interact and that just makes things difficult.

Take care of yourself, look after yourself and dont worry about others

i'm trying, but i don't want to treat others unfairly in the process.

i'm going to try to work on just mentally taking a step back, taking a deep breath, and regrouping. hopefully this will work for me. thanks for all the suggestions

 

[Halo]

you've hit it right there. it's having to interact when my brain can't take the bombardment. not that it is in actual fact a bombardment of people talking to me but it is how i experience it. i do feel overwhelmed by having to interact and that just makes things difficult.

I can relate to that feeling all too well. I tend to have times similar to that especially when I am trying to process things or am dealing with a lot of thoughts and feelings going on inside me. I just have this overwhelming feeling to tell everyone to leave me the heck alone because my brain feels like it is on overload and can't handle everything.

I find that my irritability tends to be directed towards my parents which I feel bad about (probably them because I have to contain a lot of it during work) but I find what helps is to say that I just need some space or that I have had a hard day and that helps to give me the time/space that I need alone.

 

[sister-ray]

I'm trying, but i don't want to treat others unfairly in the process.

Its yourself you are treating unfairly, dont worry about others, Im sure if they wanted time to themselves and you put on them that they would think of themselves and tell you no, its what people do nowadays, they think of themselves so as the saying goes "join the club" put yourself first, except in absolute emergencies, if people arent happy with you doing that and having your own time and not helping them then thats their problem not yours and if the people are close friends they should respect your wishes and understand and leave you alone if thats what you want.:hug:

 

[Into The Light]

thank you sister-ray :hug: