Let’s face it, sometimes emotions are hard. You may be dealing with multiple stressors, coping with trauma or grief, relationship concerns, or struggling with changes in your life. I’ll talk about what emotional overwhelm looks like and how you can take control of it.
What is Emotional Overwhelm?
Emotional overwhelm is when you become so overwhelmed that you may shut down, become fearful, or get angry. You may have problems engaging in work, finishing household tasks, or the idea of spending time with friends feels like too much. You may have a shorter fuse with others which wasn’t there before. You may also stop engaging in your hobbies, have no energy, and you may be stuck in your thoughts.
What Causes Emotional Overwhelm?
Various things can lead to emotional overwhelm such as trauma, grief, multiple stressors, life changes, coping with mental health concerns, or continuously avoiding and suppressing emotions.
If you have never learned strategies to help deal with your emotions, you are more at risk of being overwhelmed and developing mental health concerns. I have noticed that when you forget to check in with your emotions, especially during a stressful time, It is easier for you to get overwhelmed.
How To Come With Overwhelm?
Regulate your Nervous System
When your brain interprets a threat it goes into flight, fight, or freeze mode to quickly respond and protect yourself. You may feel stressed, anxious, angry, or like you need to run away or avoid what’s causing this in the first place.
There are many things you can do to regulate your nervous system, here’s a list of a few:
– Breathing techniques
– Going for a run
– Using a weighted blanket
– The dive reflex
Some of my favourite things are getting cuddles from my dog, having a cup of hot chocolate, and being out in nature.
Now that you’ve brought down the intensity of your feelings by using techniques to regulate your nervous system, the next step is to release those emotions by sitting with them.
What Is Sitting With Your Emotions?
When you sit with your feelings, you’re allowing them to exist. In today’s society, it can be easy to numb emotions with shopping, food, and substances or to avoid them by scrolling on your phone.
When you allow yourself to feel emotions, you will move through it. Whereas, if you numb or avoid your emotions it’s a temporary “solution”. This only brushes your feelings under the rug which can lead to prolonged grief, depression, anxiety, burnout, and emotional overwhelm.
How To Sit With Your Emotions
The first step is to acknowledge what you are feeling, by naming the emotion and where it’s coming from. Sometimes this can take some practice. You can use a feeling wheel to help you identify emotions.
Allow yourself to feel your emotions without trying to change them. This could look like crying or screaming into a pillow. You can also sit with your emotions in various other ways such as
– Journalling
– Singing
– Talking
– Painting
Your mind and body need time to process your emotions. This helps you move through them rather than avoid them or numb them. Therapy can be a great way to help you talk through your emotions, learn tools to help you connect to them, and have support when feeling overwhelmed.
Where to Go From Here
If you would like more support on how to cope with emotional overwhelm, you are not alone. We are happy to support you through this wellness journey. We have a team of compassionate and experienced theapists to support you.
Related
- How Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) Can Help You
- Anxiety Therapy in Okotoks
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) in Okotoks
- Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) in Okotoks
- Trauma Therapy
- What is Anxiety?
- Book a free consultation
Written by Megan Sherback, Registered Psychologist at True Living Counselling & Coaching Inc
