how to keep sane when you are in overwhelm-status
hello lovely birdies. ohhhh how do i keep sane when i am in overwhelm-status? which is quit often lately to be honest... i have a few simple things, rituals, steps, whatever you want to call them, that i do to keep me on track, to keep me going and to STOP me from being so damn overwhelmed all. the. frigging. time.
turn of the TV. seriously.
this i learned a long time ago already, but i know there are so many of you birdies out there, who are very very attracted to the damn thing. LEARN, no TRAIN yourself to quit watching stupid, brainless tv shows. not mentioning any names here! but seriously. do you need to wacht ALL THOSE SHOWS? don't think so. how i do it? it's really NOT that hard. it's turned off in our house periode. during the day: NAAAH. don't think so. after dinner my kids play, read or we just chit chat. oh those chit chats are so valuable. sure, sometimes they earn some extra time on the tv or laptop, and you know what, they pick "youtube" and pick their favorite video's to watch. i think they don't even know what 'browsing' tv channels is. for me: at night i LOVE to read, art journal, create mixed media art. anything that GIVES me energy, in stead of drains ('hanging' on the couch, watching shitty tv). but if you simply CUT DOWN on the input (like tv) you will feel much better. i promise. need some noise? turn on your favorite music! it gives me a calm mood right away!
oh, and yes i DO watch tv with the hub. we pick (netflix :) the serie we want to see, only see that one, and that's that. we have some lovely time because we do like the same series (Dexter, Suits, Homeland). but because we simply watch 1 serie, 1 episode, i can plan that and see it as 'down' and relaxing time. no time sucker here!
turn down social media!
social media is heaven and hell on earth. if you want to have MORE hours in a day: keep track of your social media business. what are you doing really?? scrolling down facebook, seeing what other people are doing? HELLOOOO. i want to live MY LIFE. not theirs. if you do feel the need to check facebook, promise yourself to do something else in stead. you can only quit 'bad' habbits by replacing it with another (good please :) habbit. so for me: if i feel the urge to scroll and scroll and let life suck out of me, i do NOT open the facebook app, but i think of what i need. do i search for information? can i find it somewhere else (website, but don't SURF THE NET), do i want to connect? can i do that in another way? do i want to check replies, comments or anything? i allow myself to open my facebook app on my iphone, but then i only click on the little globe to SEE if there's any interaction waiting my reply. if not. SHUT IT DOWN AGAIN. yes i'm shouting. and this basically goes for all social media. i much rather have my hands in paint than on my iphone. and maybe you have something you really LOVE doing. create more time for you baby!
i don't say you can never ever ever scroll and 'waste' your time, but IF you are in overwhelm, and you need to get things done, you kinda have to THINK what you are doing actually.
you can also keep track of your behavior. when and how long do you use social media. AND LEARN FROM THAT.
don't ever be afraid to cocoon
oh, when i have STUFF TO DO, i can feel pretty overwhelmed especially when people (friends, employees, clients, KIDS) ask stuff. questions or help. don't be afraid to let them know you are working now, and you don't want to be disturbed. you've go shit to do and you need to focus. for me this is the biggest problem. i always want to help out, reach out. but you've go to realise, in the moment of overwhelm THINK what do YOU need. keep on track with that, and gently let others know you are not available. (for an x-period of time).
these are just some simple tips i use when i feel there's just too much going on. and i'm kinda in that status right now. finishing up my "art mashups" for the workshop the lovely Marieke Blokland and i will be teaching next Saturday. it will be something like this, but of course then finished:
and colors. drawing and so much stuff.
life is good. tell me, what do you do to keep from being overwhelmed?
rev
