MANAGING OVERWHELM

It's here! The lazy crazy hazy days of summer. As the temperature heats up, and the days get hazy, I vowed I would not complain no matter how high the temperature soars. I am enjoying my summer and I hope you are too! I think back to summers in my childhood when the days of summer seemed to linger on forever! When school ended in June, it felt like September was so far away! Not so any more though, am I right?

Summer or not, we can all tend to get caught up in the energy of feeling overwhelmed. Life is going to continually hand us "things to deal with" and we can easily be thrown into feeling, well, crazy. The best we can do is learn how to manage our energy and our time so that we don't waste it. Good self care requires that we take the best care of ourselves, body mind and spirit. In fact, I would define the state of overwhelm as being just that.....wasting and draining energy. So here are some tips to managing overwhelm.

OK so, I am going to admit, that I am being a bit lazy......I actually got these tips by watching a webinar last week that was put on by Heartmath. But the tips were so good, I decided to use them as the content for my July newsletter.

Tip #1: Take things in segments. If you have a laundry list of things to do and you are feeling overwhelmed, there is a good chance you will procrastinate and not get anything done! Chunk it down. Focus only on one task, the task at hand. Forget about the rest of the list. Stay in the moment and you will not be wasting energy worrying about the next task. Make it OK to take a "one thing at a time" approach.

Tip #2: Reduce the Significance. OK, so there is the "event" and then there is the story or the spin or the significance we add to the event. We all have a tendency to add unnecessary stress...make mountains out of molehills. I know I can be really good at that. Adding more significance than absolutely necessary is a total waste of good energy. Remember that most things have a way of working themselves out.

Tip #3: Manage your empathy. It is important that we are compassionate and caring people, that is part of our beautiful human spirit. However, we can sometimes feel "too much" for the problems of people and the world in general. Face it, we are bombarded with images constantly of the people that are suffering all over the world. Step back, be an observer. There will always be pain and suffering, but getting caught up and attaching to outcomes is a definite drain of energy. On a personal note, I would suggest staying as far away from the mainstream media TV News, etc. as you can. It's meant to keep you in fear. And drain your energy. Do yourself a favor and turn it off!

Tip #4: Be careful of the Tech Trap. Is the advancement of technology adding quality to your life? Or is it creating the stress of more to manage. We are all carrying our cell phones, iPads, laptops, and people are actually becoming addicted to the constant stimulation of checking emails, texting, etc. Check in with yourself now and then, it's OK to pull back from your phone. I actually pulled waaayyyy back from Facebook because it was just one more thing that I just HAD to do every night.

Tip #5: Find time for practices that promote mental and emotional balance and regeneration. Self care is essential and it is not selfish to find some time every day for YOU and your relaxation. It will be different for each one of us. Maybe you like to meditate, and I like to tap, or write a gratitude list. Or walk in nature. Find something that refreshes your spirit.

Learn to conserve your precious energy. Wasting it will only leave you feeling drained and exhausted. You want to enjoy your life, not feel so bogged down by it all.

Enjoy your summer and be healthy and well always!