Q & A: Do you ever get overwhelmed? How do you cope with the endless demands of life?

Dear awesome person who asked me these questions,

First off, yes I feel overwhelmed and I think as long as we're alive there will be times when we feel overwhelmed. I even read that the Dali Lama feels overwhelmed at times. So, you are not alone. Before I had the self-awareness to check in with my emotions I would allow "overwhelm" to overtake everything in my life. I'd shut down and I could not think clearly.

I'm a #nerd and I love to research how the brain operates and after some research I was able to understand why I felt like I was "shutting down" when I felt overwhelmed in life. What was happening is that I triggered the "fight or flight" response in my brain and body. This was why I could not think clearly because my brain was operating in the lower brain. 🧠

In order to move into my "higher brain", I needed to reset my body and calm down my breathing. The best way I found to do this was to move my body: go for a walk, run, hike, swim, bike, etc. Typically after a 30-minute exercise session, my overwhelm was replaced with calmness and then I was able to start thinking logically about whatever overwhelmed me.

Until I understood this I would continue to push and push myself without taking the break to reset my brain. This just leads to more stress and overwhelm. Now I'd recommend as soon as you are feeling overwhelmed to take a break and go for a walk. That will help you feel in control and figure out what your next step is.

How do I cope with the endless demands of life?

In October 2019 I lost my father to stage four lung cancer. That loss was difficult, but it also helped me understand that we only have a limited amount of time here on earth. How we spend our time and energy matters. The people we spend this life with matter. How we show up matters. I found myself re-arranging my life after losing my father and here's how I did it.

My number one priority is God (you can believe whatever you want and I still honor you), my second priority is my family, and my third priority is everything else. Each day I get to choose what I do and how I serve the world with my gifts and abilities. Each day you choose how you show up. I say "no" a lot more often because time is the one thing we don't ever get back. At the end of your life will that extra zoom call matter or will building a snowman with your kids' matter? You choose. Every day I try to make choices that align with my priorities and let everything else go.

Make today amazing!

Allison