6 WAYS TO OVERCOME FEELING OVERWHELMED

It is quite natural to feel overwhelmed by the demands that every aspect of life can place on us. There's work and all it's paperwork, appointments, deadlines, meetings, and the list goes on. Then there's home and making sure that everything runs smoothly from grocery shopping, cooking, preparing lunches, doing laundry, cleaning every part of your home, and organizing. Let's not forget sorting through mail, tending to financial situations, and paying bills. Next on the list are the kids. They have to be tended to also. Helping them with homework and possibly even organizational skills of their own. There are doctors appointments, play dates, and after school activities that can eat up a great deal of time. Depending on how sociable your children are, you can easily become an unpaid Uber driver for them. Then there's family and friends and their needs, wishes, and wants. Maybe there's a special occasion that you have to attend, or someone who needs your help with their project, or any number of other reasons that friends and family can take up your time.There's just not enough time in the day for everything that you want and have to get accomplished, and this can leave us feeling not just overwhelmed, but taxed, frustrated, and on the verge of being depressed. For some, this is a perfect time for anxiety to kick in. That list of things to do will always be there and there will always be new demands added, but how you look at it and how you handle everything in your life will make the difference between feeling in control and feeling like it's time to check in to a mental facility. Here are a few ways to get out of that slump and get right into the drivers seat where you belong.Depending on how overwhelmed you are, taking a short break away from everything will help give you time to adjust yourself mentally so that you will be ready to tackle everything that has to be done. This is not a "slack" break where you procrastinate. This is a time away to clear your head so that you can mentally recharge and regroup Sometimes you have to step away from everything to gain clarity and a healthier perspective. Things may not be as bad as you think, and with the right plan in place, you may be able to tackle what needs to be tackled.This is not the time to prioritize. This is the time to assess the situation. What needs to be done? Don't worry about doing this in any particular order, just start writing down everything that you need to do as it comes into your head. After you've exhausted all that you can think of at the moment, you may want to do a second brainstorming by categories such as work, home, kids, family, and finances as an example to make sure that you've covered everything that needs to be done. This will help you to dump all the demands on your time on paper and get them out of your head.Now it's time to prioritize. Everything that you have to take care of should be listed on paper and ready for you to prioritize. Rearrange your list in the order by most important or most pressing to least important and will not have a major impact if it doesn't get done immediately. Some things have a deadline, so write down the time and date as well. The key is to get it all out of your head and onto a sheet of paper where you can observe it and make decisions based on what needs to be done first. Leave the space in you mind for all things good, not clutter that will chip away at your health and happiness.You would be surprised at what may be on your list that you can actually get someone else to do. Can someone else take care of cooking while you tend to cleaning? Can someone else take care of grocery shopping while you take time to tend to helping your kids with homework? Whatever your situation is, there are others who can possibly take care of one thing while you take care of another.This one is equally important as all other tips. To get multiple things done, multitasking is key. This will cut down on the time it takes to get what needs to get done and you will be able to check more than one thing off your list quicker. Prepare dinner while you do a load of laundry. Work on your bills or other paperwork while you sit with your child and help them with homework.If you find that you have trouble staying on a task for long and get sidetracked with other tasks that need your attention, or you spend way too much time on a project and neglect others, this is a good opportunity to time yourself. For example, if you need to clean your bedroom and you have to disinfect the bathrooms, set your timer for maybe twenty minutes. After that twenty minutes is up, move on the next item on your to do list. If it's not complete, you can add an additional amount of time, or come back to it depending on how important it is to get done.Feeling overwhelmed is natural, especially with so many demands from work, home, family, finances and the such. However, finding ways to overcome that feeling and make you a more productive person will help put you in the drivers seat of your life and give you that new found freedom you need.