How To Make It Through The Day When You’re Feeling Overwhelmed And Tired
Our modern lives are chaotic, jam-packed and exhausting and it can be hard to make it through the day when you are feeling overwhelmed and tired. And because it seems that every day is the same it can be very hard to get ahead of it all.
It IS possible to get through those days overwhelming and exhausting days. All it takes is a little awareness and intention and you can do it!
Here are 5 ways to do so.
#1 – Make a list and prioritize.
When you are feeling overwhelmed and tired just thinking about all of the things that needs to be done can shut you down for the day. And shutting you down for the day is definitely not what you need because that will only lead to more overwhelm tomorrow!
So take a minute and make a list of everything that you think needs to be done today. Once you have a list make a list of everything that REALLY needs to be done today. And then take that list and prioritize what needs to be done first, second and third.
If you know exactly what needs to be done, and you can look at it in front of you, your overwhelm will immediately subside, at least a bit. A big piece of overwhelm is the result of just not knowing what needs to be done.
#2 – Take it one step at a time.
Once you have your list it ‘ s important to start at the beginning.
You have a list and it ‘ s prioritized and now it ‘ s time to take it one step at a time.
Another cause of overwhelm is that we jump too quickly ahead or start to visualize an end result that isn ‘ t what we want it to be and so we get derailed.
So take each item on your list individually. And if something gets in the way don ‘ t give up. Get back to your list and keep moving forward.
#3 – Do something for yourself.
A key part of surviving through exhaustion and overwhelm is to do something to take care of yourself. When we are at the end of our rope our tendency is to put ourselves on the back burner and everyone and everything ahead of us.
It ‘ s important that we take even just a little bit of time to do something for ourselves and recharge our batteries.
What would work for you? Perhaps it ‘ s a walk or a run, a mid-morning croissant snack, tea with a friend, a pedicure or even a massage. Whatever would work for you to make your day just a little more manageable.
#4 – Remember to eat and eat well.
When we are running around like crazy we tend to forget to eat. Or if we do eat we eat something that isn ‘ t good for us.
An important part of fighting overwhelm is to make sure that we eat well, food that will fuel our journey through the day.
What kind of food? Protein is the most important – eggs, nuts, chicken, cheese. Make sure to eat a good breakfast and lunch or, at the very least, keep some protein with you to snack on. A bag of almonds in the glove box can make a huge difference.
#5 – Take a cat nap.
I know you are laughing at the thought of fitting a nap into your crazy day but if you possibly can it will make a HUGE difference.
I am the queen of the 20 minutes nap in the car. I pull over in the shade or sun, depending on the season, put my seat back and snooze for 20 minutes. When I wake up my energy levels are definitely up and I can get through the rest of my day.
So try to make some time to snooze. It will be totally worth it!
This crazy modern life we lead makes being overwhelmed and tired a regular occurrence. And, since tropical vacations aren ‘ t usually available to help us recharge, it ‘ s important that we do what we can do to get through the day.
So make a list, set your priorities and take care of yourself. If you can take care of yourself then you will better be able to take care of others. And get yourself through the day intact and ready for another one tomorrow.
I am a NYC based Certified Life Coach and mental health advocate. My writing has been published on The Huffington Post, Prevention, Psych Central, Pop Sugar, MSN and The Good Man Project, among others. I work with all kinds of people to help them go from depressed and overwhelmed to confident and happy in their relationships and in their world.
The cat nap is a pretty good move, when it works.
Car nap is awesome!
A few things I’ve found to get it to work …
1. Cover your eyes. Darker helps.
2. I find 20 minutes good because it prevents me from going too deep which can end up in a half cycle thingie, making it worse when getting up.
3. Works better after higher protein meals (like after lunch like chicken with veggies) and works worse after carb heavy meals (like pizza).
4. A coffee before the nap can work, called a “caf nap” (caffeine nap)
If you don’t get it to work too well, check what kind of foods / stimulants and duration of your nap to tweak it to energizing perfection.