01 02 03 From the Corner of the Circle L: A Sunday Thought~When Life is Overwhelming 04 05 15 16 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 31 32 33

A Sunday Thought~When Life is Overwhelming

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A Sunday Thought~When Life is Overwhelming



You know what? The same God who created Mountains & Oceans & the Stars
looked at You and thought the World needed you too.
(Picture Credit to My Cowboy)

Do you have too much on your plate? Do you feel overwhelmed and stressed out? Well I do! 
This week I have been focusing on fixing my overwhelming thoughts! I am focusing on distressing! I am focusing on getting myself peaceful.

You know we are in an age of fast paced lifestyles and heightened commercialism, EVERYWHERE we look, EVERYTHING needs our attention. Consequently, we are on information overload and we don't have time for ourselves. Right?

I know that as I juggle between family, ranch life, work and my personal needs, it is really easy to get sucked into the NEVER ENDING list of to-dos and end up feeling overwhelmed and stressed.

So how did I become overwhelmed?

Expectation~

My #1 source of stress and my overwhelming anxiety is my expectation on one particular outcome. I try to hard to satisfy that one expectation, and I place so much pressure on myself that I cause my self stress.


Take on WAY too Much~ 

My friends always say "Naomi, you have to learn to say NO." I know it, but I am not good at saying NO. I love helping people out. I love to please others and I don't like displeasing those that may need help. I don't like letting people down, but you see I actually am letting really important things that matter down, like my dreams, and spending time with my family and friends.  I can see it and I am working on it. 

TOO Much Pressure on MYSELF~ 

I have this voice inside my head that will not be quiet. It is always chattering, telling me what I did wrong, telling me that I am too fat and out of shape, and telling me that I am not good enough. This voice is negative self talk. I am working on shutting that chatter off. IT IS HARD.

I Can Do It Myself~ AKA Control. 

I have this attitude of I can do it myself. I don't want to ask for help. I am like a two-year old. I get it. I am working on it. You see, I have this overwhelming list of jobs that I think I need to get done, but I don't ask for help. 

TRY To Keep UP with the JONES~ 

No really maybe not the Jones, but with all my friends on Facebook. I know that I am not the only one that does this. "Overachiever" is another way to describe this. This one is the one that gets "Likes" and "Shares." This one makes us feel special. I am not saying that having accomplishments is bad and that we shouldn't "Share" or "Like" them, I am saying overachieving comes with a stressful price. 


So how am I going to fix it?

Quiet Time~ 

Reading my Bible and praying. Just a little quiet to turn off my chattering head. 


In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. 
Psalms 18:6

Get Out~

I have figured out that I have to get out to be able to view my circumstances and get a fresh, new perspective. So how do I do that? MOVE. I go for a walk, go for a horseback ride, call a friend to talk or have lunch. Getting out from the situation and changing my physicality helps me gain clarity and it changes my overwhelmed head.

What is Most Important~ 

This is the question that I ask myself when I get all the chattering turned off. I ask myself, "What is most important for me?" I often find myself getting so caught up in the doing, that I forget why I am doing it. I want to focus on the things that are important to me, instead of the unimportant tasks that overwhelm me. 

Writing~Journaling~

This is something that I just started. I have been writing a daily post in a notebook. I include thoughts, plans, and even have a few drawings in it. When I am starting to get that chatter voice in my head, and feel the stress and that overwhelming feeling, I know that I need to declutter my mental space. I have been dumping those thoughts right on a piece of paper. I have been making lists and you know what, they are not neat and pretty, but I don't really care.  I just want to have a metal declutter.  Believe me, it works. 

Ask for Help~ 

I am learning to ask for help. I am learning to ask more for God's help. I am learning to ask friends for help. I am learning to ask My Cowboy for more help, especially when I feel stressed and overwhelmed. You know what I have learned, rarely do I get turned down when I ask for help

Time~Set Boundaries~ 

Time is precious. My time is unrenewable. I need to spend it wisely and consciously. As I get older, I understand the importance of time.

Turn it Off~ 

When I feel stressed and overwhelmed and I feel like the world is against me, I find myself turning on the internet and just hanging out. WASTE OF TIME.  I have started something new, every Sunday I don't turn on any of my social media. I don't look at it. It has made a world of difference in my attitude and the chatter in my head. We all know that social media is addicting and it turns that chatter in our head on high. So turn it off. 

Night Time~

After we put the kids to bed, My Cowboy and I chat! I mean we just talk about our favorite parts of the day, or the worst. We talk about how thankful we are about what we have. I have really been trying to focus on giving thanks to God for all that I have and for my health and our family health. It is really important for me to get things off my chest and talking about it helps. I also do a lot of praying. I have figured out that if I can go to bed with the chattering voice off, I will wake up in the morning refreshed and ready to go. 

My Ending Thoughts~

I have started to treat my stress and overwhelming thoughts as a friend. Just like an indicator letting me know that I need to regroup, slow down and adjust the focus in my head. Life doesn't have to be overwhelming and full of stress. We cause ourselves these issues and no matter how rough our day is today, or yesterday, every morning God has a new plan for us. 

And now it is your turn to help all of us out.  What do you do when you are overwhelmed and stressed? Comment below. 

Happy Halloween from the Circle L!

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