***Where can you go when you run from the madness of overwhelm?

It’s too much. It’s way too much. You just can’t take one more something to remedy, re-organize, or create anew. You have been chugging right along, working to keep pace with everything that has come your way.

There have been moments when you have been breathless. Yet, you have persevered. You have focused on your priorities. You have managed to handle — with no small amount of finesse, I might add — the personalities and the politics. You have worked your magic. You have juggled, delegated, multitasked, created lists, made multitudinous calls, researched options, become one with your computer, stayed up late, set the alarm super early, and just kept going forward one step at a time – doing anything and everything to get over the hurdle and solve your dilemma.

You have accomplished your mission. You got it done. You did what neeeded to be done. Again.

However, these days, it has not been just one little dilemma. You have been experiencing a series of challenges in your life — be it your family, home life, work situtation, finances, health, or what-have-you. There has been no hiatus in the constant onslaught knocking at your door demanding your attention, time, effort, and expertise.

You haven’t had a chance to drop your shoulders or unclench your jaw, when, without warning, another crisis knocks at your door, “Hellooooo, anybody home?” You are ready to scream; you have reached the tipping point. You have had enough. Someone else can handle this current mess.

You are cooked. You are on sensory overload. You feel less and less capable of handling your responsibilities. You feel like you are drowning. You are going under; there is no more spunk, no more fight, no more energy. Frankly, to paraphrase Rhett Butler, you don’t give a damn anymore. Your personal reserves of strength and resiliency are long gone. You are neck-deep in overload. You are completely and thoroughly overwhelmed.

Where can you go when you are running away from the madness of overwhelm?

1. Get a hug from Mother Nature: This mother will hold you, ground you, and allow you to refind your perspective, get back into your body, and out of your head. Take big gulps of fresh air, see the sea, climb the mountains, look at the stars, tramp through the woods, or stroll through your local garden center. Find greenery, earth, sky, or bodies of water and allow yourself to be soothed and comforted, cleared and renewed. And all the while, find your outlook being expanded. Suddenly, your world may not seem so small or limited.

2. Head to the playground: Have some fun, blow off some steam, and be in the moment. Do whatever constitutes play for you. Be it cooking, yoga class, the movies, boxing, or playing with paints. The play will counterbalance the stress. Further, if you need some heady rationalization, regular “play time” is a coefficient in the formula for optimum performance: it makes your brain work better.

3. Connect with your funny bone: It sounds counterintuitive when you are drowning in overwhelm, but humor is the gods’ way of reminding us that a) there is always a bigger picture and b) not to take ourselves too seriously. Plus laugher re-infuses the system with present-time energy and that is vital in treating overwhelm. So find those Groucho glasses, watch a Monty Python movie, or call your friend from childhood and roar at some of your youthful escapades.

4. Crawl into bed: Yes, take a nap, turn in early, or sleep in. If you are going to refind your balance and move out of overwhelm, you need to be operating with all systems. Allow your brain to quiet, your body to rest and rejuvenate. It’s easier to face your world and make those daily decisions and choices if you have a good foundation. And sleep does that, it helps you to find your personal wholeness. If you are sleep deprived, you do not think as well. Your nerve endings become raw and e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g feels like a huge problem. Good sleep is half the work in fighting back the tidal waves of overwhelm.

5. Return to center: Sit still; get quiet. Breathe through your heart center for a small period of time and allow your good instincts, intuition, and creativity to come to the fore. You simply need some space and time to regain your perspective and both your short-term and long-term vision. Most times, we know deep down what needs to be done. When overwhelmed, however, it feels complicated and hard. Ask your heart center to guide you towards what is the next right step — just the next one right step – for you. One right step at a time and you can work your way out of overwhelm.

Treating overwhelm calls for a rebalancing and strengthening of the mind-body-spirit connection. Time — time in nature, time for play and creativity, time for laughter, time for rest, and time for stillness – is necessary, even in the smallest of increments.

And, yes, when in overwhelm, time is at a premium — and the very remedy you need to bring yourself back into a state of equilibrium is our ever-favorite, often-compressed, and ever-illusive time. Taking the time — to feed yourself, honor yourself, and open yourself — is good medicine. This self-nurturing can heal overwhelm as well as build up flexibility and resiliency to mitigate future overwhelm.

Ready to take some time? What do you have to lose? It will make you feel more capable, much stronger, more balanced, wiser, and sane.

P.S.  If you are in need of a perfect little book of comfort, check out my book Balancing Act: Reflections, Meditations, and Coping Strategies for Today’s Fast-Paced Whirl.  It’s an Amazon best-seller!