Reduce Overwhelm with This Calming Exercise

3 minute read

Every busy, young professional knows the feeling of being overwhelmed by thoughts.  Usually, it’s something like:

“Get up.  Get ready for work.  Ugh, I really need to do the dishes when I get home.  Why didn’t I do the laundry yesterday?  Now I have nothing to wear.  Did I ever respond to that email?  Do I have time to go to the grocery store tonight?  Really, boss?  A mandatory happy hour?  Is that even a thing?  I guess I’ll have to go to the grocery store tomorrow.  Bar food tonight, it is.  But then, this weekend, I have to make it to the gym.  Like I have time for that.  Can’t I ever catch a break?  How does anybody have time for all of this?”

Don’t you ever wish you could just tell your brain, “Enough already!”?

While thought stopping can be an effective anxiety-reduction technique, it doesn’t always feel doable during the most stressful of times.  If you’re finding it hard to turn your brain off, take 15 minutes to try this mental cleanup exercise.

Materials:
Paper
Pen/pencil
Timer (optional)

Step 1:  Observe

Sometimes, our thoughts go so fast we don’t even realize how many we’re having.  Start the exercise by sitting comfortably, closing your eyes, and breathing naturally.  Without trying to change anything, notice whatever you’re thinking naturally.  Let your train of thought run, and watch where it goes.

Step 2:  Write it all down

After about one minute of observing your mind, open your eyes and write down a list of everything you thought about.  Do this with no rhyme or reason.  Your list may contain a hodgepodge of to-do list items, emotions, ideas for your current work project, worries, self-judgments, and more.  Whatever it is, write it down.

Step 3:  Get calm

Now, let’s do some nervous system calming.  If you’re stressed, your heart is likely beating faster than normal, your breath may be uneven, and your body is probably tense.  Close your eyes and notice your body.  Breathe in a way that feels good and try to relax your muscles.  If your mind is still going, distract it with calming imagery, counting your breaths, or box breathing.  Do this for about three to five minutes.

Step 4:  Reflect and rewrite

When our nervous system is activated, it becomes much harder to think clearly.  After a calming exercise like the one above, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to look at the list you made earlier with brand new eyes.  Reflect on what you wrote down.  What comes to mind?  Do you have any new perspectives?  Problem solutions?  

Take notes.  Rewrite some or all of the items on your list according to your insights.  For example, you may categorize your list into problems to be solved and problems to be coped with.  Maybe, you write out a schedule for the next day or week, planning when to tackle all your to-do list items.  Whatever new thoughts you have, write them down on a completely different page to highlight the difference between your calm and activated mindsets.

Step 5:  Get Up and Go

Once you’re finished writing, review your notes.  If you’d like, you can rip out your original list and throw it away, focusing only on the writings of your calmer self.  Ask yourself, “What now?” and instead of trying to figure out how you’ll ever get it all done, commit to doing just the next thing, knowing that while the demands of life never stop, you can always return to this strategy when you’re in need of a clearer, calmer mind.