The reality life can get overwhelming at times and some us feel that overwhelm sooner than others. We feel we “should†be able to handle the overwhelm when it inserts itself into our lives, but because we aren’t handling it, then “there’s something wrong with us.†Now that we doubt our ability to handle the situation, we become more overwhelmed and the cycle continues. However, the fact remains, we’re overwhelmed.
From a mindfulness perspective, I might say to see if you can bring a kind attention to the feeling of overwhelm. Inquire into it as if it was the first time you ever noticed it, getting a sense of its shape, texture or depth. See what happens if you just allow it to be and notice what happens next instead of buying into the thought, “I can’t handle this.”
However, sometimes the overwhelm is too great and in my mind, the underpinnings of mindfulness is to figure out what the most skillful action is to take. Perhaps “being with†the overwhelm isn’t what is best in that moment for your stress reduction and well-being and instead we need to “take a break†from it in order to help stop the spiral.
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http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=43318&cn=117