I love the word flailing. It perfectly captures the moments when I feel out of control and overwhelmed. I picture someone with arms waving all around ready to fall over from the sheer weight of life. I feel like that sometimes, and I bet you do too.

Pushing Too Hard

By nature, I tend to be an overachiever and I always strive for the best. The problem with this is that I put enormous pressure on myself to succeed and push past anything that might be holding me back. There are times when I am just too tired or don’t feel well, and I keep pushing. This is not healthy, and I know that because pretty soon, I am flailing all over the place.

The Slow Build

The feeling of being overwhelmed starts slow; you don’t notice it at first. Then you feel rushed, too much pressure, everyone needs you, and you feel like screaming. Or maybe you want to run out the door or pull your hair out. None of this is healthy and not a place you should ever let yourself get to, but we all do it.

It starts with one little text or email in the morning and the next thing you know; you are knee deep in too many details and too much stuff on your plate. What can you do?

You Don’t Need a Life of Urgency

About a year ago, I made significant changes to cut the urgency out of my life. Life circumstances have brought a bit of it back to me. I haven’t adjusted well to it at all. But I do know the steps I need to take to fix it and reverse the effects.

The first thing you can do is take a break. Walk away and spend a few minutes alone meditating to quiet the thoughts in your head. Take slow, deep breaths until you find a bit of peace. Use tapping to clear your negative emotions or anxiety.

Next, cut a bunch of things off your to-do list and push them off until tomorrow. There isn’t much that can’t wait a day or two. If people pressure you, push them back too. They can wait, your sanity is more important than whatever they need from you.

Next, scale back your schedule, so it doesn’t include so much stuff per day. Make it reasonable and more peaceful with built-in breaks.

Be Proactive Rather Than Reactive

Finally, watch for signs that you are flailing and feeling stressed before you get the boiling point. It’s much easier to prevent a fire than put one out.

Incorporate some mindful actions into each day and try to “be in the moment” often. If you hate aspects of your life, no matter how hard it may seem, make small changes towards something better. Just having a plan can sometimes turn your whole mindset around.

We Are All Human

Remind yourself often that we are all in this life together. Be kind to one another and feel compassion and empathy when you see someone else struggling. They might just be flailing a bit too.