Overwhelm Is Reversible. Here Are the Best Strategies From Psychology and Neuroscience | Claudia Hammond

1. Cultivate Self-Compassion

Apply the ‘Would you say this to a friend?’ test to negative self-talk and practice compassionate self-touch to reassure yourself after mistakes, fostering self-kindness and alleviating pressure.

2. Abandon Perfectionism

Recognize that the pursuit of perfection is futile and often leads to fear of failure, insecurity, and burnout without improving performance, so focus on strengths and accept being ‘good enough’.

3. Reappraise Stress as Excitement

Reframe physical stress responses like a racing heart as excitement, understanding that these feelings often signify something important to you and can sharpen your focus.

4. Accept Ever-Present To-Do List

Understand that your to-do list will always exist and that’s okay; don’t feel oppressed by it, and accept that not everything needs to be completed immediately.

5. Write To-Do List Before Bed

Cognitively offload your next day’s tasks by writing them down before sleep, which helps you fall asleep faster by preventing mental rumination.

6. Practice Daily Gratitude

Each night, write down three good things that happened and reflect on why they were meaningful, actively looking for positives to counter negative biases.

7. Prioritize Breaks and Rest

View taking breaks and resting as crucial for psychological well-being and mental health, not as laziness, and actively work to overcome any associated guilt.

8. Prioritize Important Tasks First

Begin your workday by tackling the most important and difficult task before checking emails or engaging in other distractions, and prepare your workspace the night before.

9. Forgive Past Procrastination

If you’ve procrastinated, forgive yourself instead of self-flagellating, as self-forgiveness has been shown to reduce the likelihood of repeating the behavior.

10. Break Down Daunting Tasks

Divide large or overwhelming tasks into smaller, more manageable parts to make them less intimidating and more motivating, leveraging immediate rewards from completing small steps.

11. Use ‘If-Then’ Planning

Proactively decide how you will handle potential distractions or challenges by setting ‘if-then’ rules to stick to your goals and avoid being sidetracked.

12. Limit News Consumption Strategically

Disable news alerts, choose specific reliable sources, and set fixed times for consuming news (e.g., ’no news before noon’ or after dinner) to reduce overwhelm and emotional drain.

13. Gain Perspective on Worries

Practice mental time travel (imagining your future self looking back) or psychological distancing (discussing worries in the third person) to evaluate their accuracy and significance.

14. Schedule Dedicated Worry Time

Designate a specific 10-minute period each day to consciously address your worries, and during other times, actively postpone worries until your scheduled time.

15. Embrace Uncertainty

Cultivate acceptance of life’s inherent uncertainties, recognizing that nothing is certain and finding ways to live with that reality.

16. Adopt Altruistic Mindset

Focus on being of benefit to others, as an outward-focused, altruistic mindset can help mitigate personal fears and provide a sense of purpose.

17. Seek Flow States

Identify and engage in activities that allow you to become completely absorbed, with clear goals and immediate feedback, where the challenge balances your skills, to experience moments of focused concentration.

18. Deliberately Induce Nostalgia

Consciously recall and immerse yourself in positive, nostalgic memories (especially those congruent with your present self or from the recent past) to boost mood, self-esteem, and optimism.

19. Automate Small Decisions

Reduce decision fatigue by automating minor choices, such as daily attire or lunch, to free up mental energy for more meaningful decisions.

20. Understand Your Biology for Health

Get data from lab tests and track biomarkers to understand what’s happening inside your body, enabling you to make health resolutions based on your biology rather than guesswork.

21. Engage in Meditation Practices

Utilize guided meditations, meditation challenges, and live Q&A sessions to cultivate mindfulness, manage stress, and foster mental well-being.

22. Spend Time in Nature

Engage with nature or take ‘awe walks’ to experience a sense of wonder and gain perspective on your personal problems, reminding you that life continues beyond your immediate concerns.

23. Track Worry Resolution Time

Observe and note how quickly your worries are resolved in reality, which can help put their actual impact into perspective and reduce future anxiety.

24. Seek Nuanced News Coverage

Beyond headlines, actively seek out in-depth, nuanced articles or solution-focused journalism to gain a more complete understanding of events and avoid feeling helpless.

25. Avoid Counterfactual Regret

Once a choice is made, avoid looking for alternative outcomes or ‘what-ifs’ that might induce regret and undermine your current decisions.

26. Practice Psychological Distancing

Discuss your worries in the third person (e.g., ‘Claudia is worried…’) to create emotional distance, enabling a more rational and factual assessment of the situation.

27. Reflect on Past Coping

Recall past instances of resilience and how you dealt with setbacks to build confidence and motivate yourself when facing new challenges or temptations to procrastinate.

28. Challenge Worries with Evidence

Treat your worries as a case in court, asking for concrete evidence to support their likelihood, which helps you assess their accuracy and rationality.

29. Cultivate Expansive Realism

Develop an accurate understanding of your capabilities and limitations, accepting that you are ‘good enough’ and don’t need to excel at everything.

30. Practice Humility

Embrace humility, as it is valued in relationships and can lead to better self-assessment and reduced pressure to always be right or perfect.

31. Change Self-Imposed Standards

If experiencing internal overwhelm, identify and adjust the unrealistic standards you set for yourself, allowing for a more sustainable and less stressful approach to life.