Last Updated on April 25, 2024

Feelings of overwhelm can develop at different times in our lives, the most common time being when life gets busy.

Overwhelm presents itself in different ways, for me it makes me more easily annoyed by others, I can’t focus on getting things done, and I feel unmotivated.

The good news is that there are things that you can do to feel less overwhelmed, get back on track with your life, and keep up with your to do list.

Here are some ideas you may like to try to feel less overwhelmed when life gets busy, or that you can try if you’d like to tackle feelings of overwhelm before it all gets too much.

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GET EVERYTHING OUT OF YOUR HEAD AND ONTO PAPER

Sometimes just thinking about everything we need to get done creates feelings of overwhelm, which is why getting everything out of your head is really important.

The best way to get everything out of your head and lessen overwhelm is to brain dump it all, which means writing everything you’re thinking about down on a list either on paper or electronically.

Doing this makes you feel immediately better, it allows you to see what’s important and what’s not, and allows you to schedule time to work on things.

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JOURNAL YOUR FEELINGS

Similar to getting things out of your head and onto paper, using a journal to write down your feelings, emotions, and what’s making you feel overwhelmed can help you to see the bigger picture, and find solutions to the things that are causing your overwhelm.

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PRIORITISE YOUR TIME

A big contributor to feelings of overwhelm are our to do lists, especially when they’re long.

Some ways to feel less overwhelmed with our to do lists is to look at them each day and see if there’s anything on them that can be moved to another day, or that can be removed if not doing them makes no difference to the outcome of our goals.

Another way to lessen overwhelm with your to do list is to only have 3-5 priorities on them each day, 3-5 tasks is achievable and contributes greatly to our feelings of accomplishment, which motivates us to keep working on more to dos as time goes on.

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LEARN TO SAY NO

Whilst we don’t want to let anyone down, constantly saying yes to things means that we’re saying no to something that may be more important.

Saying yes to too many things also means that we’re doing things we don’t want to do, and prioritising other people’s to do lists over our own, which adds to feelings of overwhelm.

Learning to say no gracefully when we really don’t want to do something, when we don’t have the time, or when we have more important things to do is important not only for our mental health, but also for our stress levels, and in achieving our own priorities.

DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT

I’m very guilty of working on things longer than I need to.

I rewrite things until they sound just right, and do way too much research, which means things take longer to finish than they should.

I constantly have to tell myself that done is better than perfect in an effort to finish something when it is good enough, instead of spending time reworking it, and researching more things to get it just right, because really there isn’t such a thing as just right.

The end result of whatever I’m working on will largely be the same, whether I spend 30 minutes on it, one hour, or 10 hours.

Remembering that done is better than perfect is a great way to feel less overwhelmed when working on a task.

LOOK AT OTHER WAYS TO DO THINGS

There may be other ways that you can do things that save you time, thereby lessening your overwhelm.

For example, are there any other ways that you can tackle cleaning so you spend less time doing it? Can you do certain tasks on certain days, for example, can you do laundry on two days of the week instead of five?

Can you add something that you want to make a habit into an existing routine? For example, if you want to read more can you read for 10 minutes as part of your night time or morning routine?

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LOOK AFTER YOURSELF

When we’re constantly meeting the needs of others, saying yes to all of the things, or over packing our to do list, we’re not meeting our own needs properly.

A great way to feel less overwhelmed is to make sure that we’re looking after ourselves, which means we may need to go back to basics and do things like drink water, get rest, eat well, exercise, and take vitamins.

Once you go back to basics you can start to add some self care activities into your days, which include activities such as watching your favourite show, reading, catching up with friends, or anything else that makes you feel good, less overwhelmed, and more balanced.

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DECLUTTER

Decluttering is my go to activity when I feel overwhelmed.

Decluttering isn’t everyone’s idea of lessening their overwhelm, especially if tackling a large decluttering project, as it can actually add to feelings of overwhelm by adding to your to do list.

Therefore, it’s best to do a small declutter project only in an area of your life that’s creating overwhelm.

This may mean decluttering a room in your home that you spend a lot of time in and makes you feel frustrated whenever you’re in it, decluttering toys from your car, or clearing your schedule so you have some time to yourself.

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ASK FOR HELP

Asking for help so you don’t have to do it all isn’t easy for many of us, myself included, but asking for help can really help you feel less overwhelmed.

Whether it’s asking someone to watch your children for a little while, delegating or outsourcing a household chore, or even talking to a friend to let them know how you’re feeling, asking for help and not feeling guilty about it allows you to free up some of your time, and let go of things that are causing you stress.

I hope you’ve found some things to try when you’re feeling overwhelmed, and that help you get some joy back into your days.

What do you think you’ll try from this list to lessen your overwhelm?
I’d love to hear about them in the comments section below.